Simple Gestures
by Millemini
Summary: AU. Auggie is deaf in this story. Premise: Annie is a translator at Linguistic Endeavors and Auggie is their new Head of IT. When he manages to save Annie's computer and her work, so she can meet a deadline, it's the beginning of a friendship - and maybe something more...? This is a collaboration between EmeraldEyedPhoenix and me. Rated T.
1. Chapter 1

_A long time ago someone pitched me the idea to write an AU story where Auggie is deaf instead of blind. I thought the idea was cool, but I just couldn't make the story flow and I gave up on it. A while back I mentioned this to __**EmeraldEyedPhoenix**__ and she loved the idea and suggested we could work together on this story. She gave me the basic idea for the premise and I wrote a rough draft. It has gone back and forth between us a few times and now the first chapter is ready for posting. We both have busy schedules, so I don't know how often we'll be able to update. It will probably be a few weeks between the chapters. __We hope you enjoy this version of Annie and Auggie._

_DISCLAIMER: The usual stuff... I don't own Annie or Auggie or any other element from Covert Affairs._

* * *

**-Chapter 1-**

Annie Walker loved her job at Linguistic Endeavors. Ever since she was in elementary school she'd loved learning new languages and visiting different cultures. Her father's job had taken the family all over the world and by the time Annie graduated from high school she was fluent in four languages. When she graduated from Georgetown University with a Masters degree in linguistics, she was fluent in another three and could get by in an additional five or six. She'd been recruited by Linguistic Endeavors straight out of Georgetown and loved the variety of her job. Her main job was translating documents, but she regularly went out to interpret on-site. The on-site interpreting was her favorite part of her job.

Friday afternoon, Annie was about to log off her computer when a new email appeared in her inbox. It was from Arthur Campbell; the CEO of the company and it was marked as important. The subject line said: "Introducing our new Head of IT". Annie quickly opened the email and read through it.

_My name is August Anderson and I'm the new Head of IT here at Linguistic Endeavors. I'm 32 years old and grew up in Glencoe, Illinois. I graduated from Gallaudet College here in DC with a Masters degree in Computer Science in 2006. Since college I've worked in the IT field._

_To save you, and me, from frustrating (and potentially embarrassing) situations I want to be clear about some things right from the start._

_I'm completely deaf, can't hear a thing. And no, hearing aids wouldn't help. I don't speak, but I'm good at reading lips. Please make sure you're facing me and speak clearly when you speak to me. Usually I'll reply with a written note, but generally, if you don't know sign language, the most efficient way of two-way communication with me is likely to be email or the inter-office IM system. _

_I'm looking forward to getting started with my job here and to meet you all. Please don't hesitate to ask if you have any questions._

_Best regards, _

_August Anderson_

There was a picture attached to the email and Annie clicked to open it. Suddenly her screen was filled with the face of a smiling man. He was definitely handsome in Annie's book; chiseled jaw, dark brown eyes and wavy dark brown hair that curled along the collar of his light blue shirt and down his forehead. What really caught her attention were his eyes: dark brown and expressive.

"Who's that?" A familiar voice startled Annie slightly; it was her co-worker, Samantha.

"Oh…that's the new IT guy, August Anderson. Didn't you get his email?"

"Never bothered to read it, figured I'd drop by his office and say hi when he starts on Monday."

"That might be a bit tricky."

"Huh?"

"He's deaf-mute. Can't hear and doesn't speak. Unless you know sign language you're better off sending him an email."

"Oh…"

"It's in the email. I guess that's why he sent it; to let people know about his disability and hopefully make things easier us to interact with him. And him with us"

"I see. Well, are you ready to get out of here and head over to Allen's for a few?"

"Definitely! It's Friday and I could definitely use a drink. Heck, I deserve it since I managed to clear my inbox today and, for the first time in ages, I can start the new week without a backlog of stuff to deal with."

* * *

Monday morning Annie was running late. A car crash had kept her stuck in traffic for almost an hour and she rushed through the halls toward her desk. Just as she rounded a corner she crashed into a person. The folders he'd been carrying went flying and Annie was mortified to see papers everywhere. She quickly squatted down and tried to gather up the papers for him.

"Gosh, I'm so sorry. There was a car crash and then I was stuck in traffic and I'm running so late. But I should've been paying attention to where I was going. Man, I've really made a mess for you here…"

A hand on her shoulder stopped her rambling and she looked up into August Anderson's face. He looked at her with a confused expression on his face and it dawned on her that he hadn't heard a word she'd said. Annie quickly got to her feet and apologized again. He appeared a bit insecure, but smiled and shrugged as he took the papers she'd scooped up from her hand. Annie apologized again and this time she signed "Sorry" when she said it. A look of surprise and what Annie could only describe as happiness, spread across August's face and shone through his deep brown eyes. He quickly signed something back to her but it was way to fast for her to get it. She put a hand on his arm. "Whoa! You're getting way ahead of me now. I only know a few phrases and the basic alphabet." she said as she made sure to face Auggie and speak clearly to make it easier for him to read her lips.

He pulled a small notepad and a pen out of his pocket and wrote something. Then he held it out for her to see while he offered her his right hand.

"Better than nothing. I'm August Anderson, I go by Auggie."

Annie pointed to herself and tentatively spelled out her name in sign language before taking his offered hand. "Nice to meet you. I'd better get going. I'm running really late." He smiled and nodded then continued down the hallway toward the IT department. She couldn't help admiring his backside a bit; he was wearing a pair of dark jeans that fit him perfectly, a white shirt and a tailored vest. She noticed his narrow waist and broad shoulders; he probably spent quite a few hours a week in the gym.

Auggie couldn't help the small smile that spread across his face when he walked down the hallway after his encounter with Annie Walker. He'd been nervous about starting his new job for a while; he never knew how people would react to his deafness and communication was always a challenge. He'd attended special schools for the deaf from kindergarten and all the way through college where everyone knew how to sign and being deaf or hearing impaired wasn't a big deal. Out in 'the real world' it was a different story. He generally managed okay, better than he'd anticipated when he left the safe confines of college, but starting a new job was always nerve-wracking. That Annie knew a bit of sign language was a pleasant surprise and he hoped he'd get to know her better. He wondered what she did and what department she worked in.

* * *

A week later Annie was stressing to meet a deadline. It was a major assignment for one of their biggest clients and when her boss had given her the assignment she'd emphasized how important it was to meet the deadline. The document was big and contained much tech jargon and it took more focus and work than normal to work through it. She was about done with about two thirds of it when her computer screen suddenly went black. She tried all the tricks she knew short of pulling the power cord out to no avail. The computer remained dead and her work all but lost. With only three hours left until the deadline, a wave of panic washed over her. She picked up the phone and dialed the extension for the tech-support office. All she got was a message that the crew was at a seminar and to contact the head of IT, August Anderson, via the IM system if it was urgent. Annie slammed the handset back into the cradle with a frustrated sigh and raked a hand through her hair. What on earth was she going to do now?

Contacting Auggie via the inter office IM was out of the question since her computer didn't work and it wasn't like she could call him either. She'd seen him in the hallways a few times and a couple of days earlier he'd seen him eating lunch alone. Annie had considered joining him, but he was reading some paperwork as he ate and she figured he was busy and didn't want to intrude. She was also slightly hesitant about it because she wasn't sure how they'd go about communicating. She knew a little bit of sign language; a few basic signs and the alphabet. She'd learned when her roommate at Georgetown dated a guy that was severely hearing impaired for a few months. At one point she'd considered signing up for an ASL class, but she'd been too busy with her Masters thesis and had never got around to it later. Now she wished she'd taken the class. With a sigh she got up from her desk and walked down the hallway toward the IT department.

Auggie was busy. His new job was definitely more challenging than his previous one, but he liked it. What he didn't like was that he felt pretty isolated; he knew it would take his co-workers a while to adjust to him and learn the most efficient ways to communicate with him, but it still stung to eat lunch alone every day and not be invited along for end-of-the-week beers with his coworkers. He hoped they'd warm up to him soon.

A whiff of grapefruit caught his attention and he looked up to see the woman that had bumped into him in the hallway on his first day. Annie. She looked anxious and almost like she was at the verge of tears. He gestured for her to enter and she sat down on the edge of one of the chairs in front of his desk. Auggie quickly grabbed his notepad and wrote; "What's wrong? Anything I can help you with?" and slid it over to her. She smiled tentatively and wrote something before she slid the pad back to him.

"My computer stopped working. The screen went black and it won't turn back on. I have a deadline and I'm afraid I've lost all of my work."

Auggie looked up at her when he finished reading. She looked like she was about to burst into tears. He smiled reassuringly and wrote her another note. "I'll take a look at it. Just show where your workstation is."

He followed the shapely blonde (he'd found himself admiring her from afar for a while now; he was deaf, not blind after all) to her workstation. She offered him her chair and he took a seat. She still looked like she was about to burst into tears any moment so he passed her a note reassuring her that he'd do everything he could to save her work. She smiled wide, a smile he was fast beginning to appreciate, and perched on the corner of her desk as he got to work.

Half an hour later, her computer was back to life and her work was almost all intact as well. She thanked him profusely verbally and with the "thank you" sign. He brought up a blank word document on her screen and replied that it was his pleasure and was on his way back to the server room before she could reply.

An hour later the inter-office IM system popped up on his screen, signaling a new message. He quickly clicked to open it.

**_Anne C. Walker:_**_ Hi Auggie. I just wanted to thank you again for your help today!_

**_August Anderson:_**_ No problem, Annie. Like I said, it was my pleasure. It's my job after all. :)_

**_Anne C. Walker:_**_ Still, I wouldn't have made my deadline if not for you. Do you have any plans for lunch? _

**_August Anderson:_**_ No, not really. Figured I'd hit the food court and check out today's offerings. _

**_Anne C. Walker:_**_ The food court in the building is surprisingly good, but there are some great cafés in the area too._

**_August Anderson:_**_ Meet you by the elevators at noon?_

**_Anne C. Walker:_**_ Sounds good to me. See you there. :)_

* * *

_Please let us know what you think in a review. :o)_


	2. Chapter 2

**_Note to self: Publishing fanfics after consuming a considerable amount of alcohol isn't a great idea. Or writing AN's for that matter. So, here's my second attempt to write an AN:_**

**_Thank you so much for the feedback on chapter 1. :o) Here's the _****_second, hope you like it. It's mainly _**_**EmeraldEyedPhoenix****'s work; I wrote a very rough draft (more like an outline really) and she really worked some magic on it. All the small touches about deaf life are hers - she knows her stuff. :o)**_

_**DISCLAIMER: The usual stuff. Don't own Annie, Auggie or any other things we've borrowed from Covert Affairs. Just our little universe and our storyline.**_

* * *

**-Chapter 2-**

Annie left her desk at 11:55 and arrived at the elevator shortly before noon. There was no sign of Auggie, but she figured he'd be there soon and sat down on the bench across from the elevators to wait for him. Five minutes passed, then 10 and when it got close to 15 minutes she decided to go to his office find out if they needed to reschedule.

She found him sitting by his desk with his iPad in front of him, signing lightening fast with an animated look on his face. It appeared he was having a conversation with someone using FaceTime and Annie watched with fascination. Suddenly she remembered a memo she'd received a few days earlier; Linguistic Endeavors needed more interpreters for their ASL department and offered a class to their staff. At the time it hadn't really caught her attention, but now she figured she should sign up for it. She wanted to be able to talk to Auggie like that instead of passing notes back and forth. It took Auggie a minute or so to realize Annie's presence. He checked the time and ended the call almost immediately amid a flurry of hands. With her meager sign vocabulary she only caught a word or two, "sorry" and ""shit" being the most prominent.

"Hey, no swearing," Annie said, grinning. "Are we going for lunch or what?"

Auggie blinked momentarily in surprise that she understood, of all words, that one. He signed sorry with a sheepish grin of his own, nodded and grabbed his iPad and a small folded keyboard from his desk. He stuffed them into his messenger bag and slung it over his shoulder as he joined Annie by the door.

# # # # # # # # # # #

Fifteen minutes later they were seated next to each other by a table a little bit away from the rest of the lunch crowd. Auggie had set up his iPad so they both could see the screen and he'd placed the keyboard between them. He opened an app Annie didn't know.

"Figured this was easier than a notepad. You can touch type, right?" Auggie looked at her with a questioning look on his face.

"Absolutely, I spend most of my workdays typing. What's this app? I've never seen it before." Annie tried to look insulted that he doubted her typing skills as she demonstrated them, but her curiosity about the app took over.

"Just a little college project of mine. Made it as part of my Masters thesis, it's sort of an offline IM system. Comes in very handy when I communicate with people that don't sign."

"Neat!"

"Sorry I was late for lunch. My buddy called me, haven't heard from him in a while and got so carried away I forgot about time." Auggie looked like he was really sorry.

"It's okay. We all get distracted from time to time."

"Still, I should've kept track of time. I'm generally a punctual person."

"Thanks for buying me lunch."

"After keeping you waiting by the elevators for almost 15 minutes it's the least I could do. Can I ask you something?"

"Sure."

"Where did you learn how to sign?" He looked truly curious about that.

"My college roommate dated a guy that was hard of hearing and I learned a few basics from him. Just a few phrases and the alphabet. They broke up before we got to the more advanced stuff."

"Apparently you know the swear words too." Auggie grinned and his eyes had a teasing twinkle.

"Ha! I'm good at picking things up on my own too. I thought about learning more at the time but never got around to it what with all my other courses. I was actually thinking about signing up for this ASL class the company is offering. They start next week."

"Don't. If you really want to learn, I'll teach you."

"Really? I'm sure you have enough on your plate already."

"Please let me teach you. I enjoy teaching people my 'language'." The 'begging puppy' look on his face won Annie over.

"Well, if you're sure, I'm in. I've always preferred to learn new languages from 'native speakers'."

A wide smile spread across Auggie's face.

"First lesson is Friday evening, my place. Bring a pizza, no anchovies or mushrooms."

"Deal! Thanks Auggie." Annie signed her thank you as well after she finished typing. Auggie smiled widely and signed slowly to Annie. She recognized the sign for happy but nothing else. At her look of slight confusion Auggie quickly typed 'happy to help you'.

"Oh! Wow, I guess I have a lot to learn."

"You'll do fine." Annie's cheeks blushed what he decided was a beautiful shade of pink at his confidence in her. She then looked at the iPad screen again and looked decidedly flustered. He followed her pointing finger to the clock in the corner of the screen and realized that they'd probably stretched their lunch break longer than they should have. They hurriedly cleaned up the remnants of their meals and he gathered his iPad and keyboard back into his messenger bag.

"See you later!" Annie said to him as they parted ways at the elevator. Auggie signed it back to her and was more than pleased when, after a moment's hesitation, she signed it back to him with a knowing glint in her eye. She really was a quick study.

* * *

On Friday afternoon, Auggie left work later than he'd hoped and ended up being stuck in traffic for what felt like forever. When he finally entered his apartment he checked the time and realized he only had about an hour before Annie would be there. He almost regretted his impulse decision to invite her over. As Auggie quickly surveyed his apartment he was grateful for his neat streak. He liked that everything had its place and he didn't own a lot of stuff, so he didn't have to worry about tidying up. He decided to grab a quick shower before Annie got there and made quick work of the few steps up to the bedroom area of his studio apartment.

# # # # # # # # # # # # #

An hour later, Annie rang Auggie's doorbell. He answered the door a few minutes later. She noticed he was obviously freshly showered and dressed in a maroon t-shirt that hugged him in all the right places and worn comfortable looking jeans. With a smile, he gestured for her to come in.

"Wait a minute," Annie said, stopping him. "How did you know I was here? I _heard_ the doorbell…" He cut her off with his index finger across her lips. He walked out of the still open door and pressed the doorbell. To Annie's surprise, a lamp beside the door flashed on and off several times.

"Cool!" He flashed a self satisfied grin and took the pizza from her hands.

"Hungry?" Annie asked. Auggie nodded emphatically in reply and sat the steaming pizza on the kitchen island. With a mixture of expression and pantomime, Annie understood that she should make herself comfortable on the couch in the living room area. While he busied himself with bringing plates and beers to the coffee table, she looked around his apartment a bit.

"Hey, you like Star Wars?" Annie asked as she pointed to an old Boba Fett Star Wars figurine.

Auggie nodded and finger spelled "nerd" while pointing to himself.

"I guess that makes me a nerd too. Do you have the movies?"

Auggie headed over to the cupboard that held his BluRay player and some other electronics and moments later he returned, carrying a box set of Star Wars movies.

"Wow! You've got the collectors edition."

He finger spelled "nerd" again and shrugged with a grin.

"Let's watch one?" Annie suggested hopefully. He gave her a look of disbelief.

"Well, unless you've got other plans for tonight."

Auggie shook his head and grabbed the first movie out of the box.

"I hope you don't mind captions." Auggie typed on the iPad app once they had settled on the couch and dug in to their dinner.

"Not at all. I watch a lot of foreign language movies with captions actually."

Relieved, Auggie couldn't help but admit to himself that this woman seemed to constantly surprise and even amaze him with her open-mindedness and easy acceptance of things that threw most people for a loop. He could see himself getting in deep with this one and for once, he wasn't afraid to take the leap.

After the movie went off, they started Annie's first ASL lesson. Auggie was impressed right off the bat at how fast she was catching on.

"How many languages do you speak?" Auggie asked via the iPad.

"I'm in fluent in seven, but I can get by in a few more."

"Impressive! What triggered you interest in linguistics?"

"My Dad's job had us moving around a lot, I've lived in several countries for shorter or longer periods of time and learning the local language was always easy to me."

"Languages have never been my strong suit. Took a French class in high school, but that's it for my knowledge of foreign languages."

"May I ask why don't you speak? I know of many hard of hearing and deaf people who do speak."

Auggie sighed and closed his eyes momentarily. Memories from his childhood came flooding back and they were not pleasant ones. He'd lost his hearing before his second birthday, due to meningitis, and he'd grown up feeling like his parents thought he was broken and they desperately tried to fix him. That included insisting he learn to lip-read and sending him to speech therapy from a young age. It was something he'd found incredibly hard, since he was completely deaf and had been so young when he lost his hearing that he'd never learned to speak properly in the first place. His four older brothers had constantly made fun of him and how he sounded and at a point around the time he started middle school he'd refused to go to the speech therapist any more. He was convinced he sounded horrible and was hard to understand. Since he went to a school for the deaf he didn't need to speak at school, it was just at home the pressure was on. His parents had been very upset when he decided to give up speaking, insisting that it would make it impossible for him to get a job once he graduated college. So far he'd proved them wrong.

"Never got the hang of it. Tried speech therapy as a kid, but it just didn't work for me. I manage fine without speaking."

"Wouldn't it be easier to communicate though?"

"I doubt it. I was told I was hard to understand."

"But don't you think you could work on it? Everything takes practice."

"Please just back off. I tried for years as a kid. There's no way I'm going through that again."

Annie looked over at him. His jaw was clenched and he looked like he was somewhere between pissed off and hurt. She realized she'd touched a sore subject and signed "sorry" with an apologetic look on her face. He nodded and they just sat there for a few moments until Auggie signed sorry too and then he reached for the keyboard again.

"I'm sorry I overreacted. Let's just drop it, okay?"

Annie nodded and squeezed his forearm.

"I didn't mean to pry."

"I know. You just need to understand that this is who I am. I don't speak. If you're not ok with that then maybe we're done here." He finished typing and purposely looked away from her.

"No, Auggie, please don't be that way." Annie typed after gently grasping his chin and turning his face back to her. "If it made a difference to me whether you speak or not, I wouldn't be here now." He looked into her eyes and his features slowly softened.

Slowly he signed 'Thank you Annie.' He knew she wouldn't understand the sign for her name that he'd invented so he signed it again, this time pointing to her as well.

"That's the sign for me?"

"It's your name." The look in her eyes nearly floored him.

"Show me again." she spoke, forgetting the keyboard in her excitement. He obliged and she signed it back to him, using her right hand in the letter "a" sign held to the right of her mouth and pulled upwards to sort of trace a smile. Her smile, she realized.

"You made it up?" He nodded. "What's yours?" He signed his name, the letter "a" sign laid palm down on the top of his wrist and slip up his forearm to his elbow. She repeated it to him and he nodded that she had it correctly. He then turned to the keyboard and began typing.

"It's the sign for "computer" but done with the letter "a" hand for my name instead of the "c" hand. I've really always been a nerd." he explained.

# # # # # # # # # # #

They practiced for a little longer then decided to call it a night. She'd learned a lot, and not just about sign language. He walked her to the door and after a bit of hesitation, Annie pulled him into an awkward but warm hug. She pulled back and signed "Thank you Auggie." very sincerely. She was rewarded with a small but sweet and slightly bashful smile. He replied with "Happy to help you. Good night, Annie." She smiled again, remembering their lunch conversation as she turned to go. Auggie watched from his door until the elevator doors slid shut while Annie waved to him. "What a woman." he thought to himself and he slid his own door closed.

* * *

**We love reviews, so please let us know what you think. ;o)**


	3. Chapter 3

_Thanks to those of you that reviewed the previous chapter - we really appreciate it. :o) We're having so much fun with this collaboration and again __**EmeraldEyedPhoenix**__ has worked some magic on my very rough drafts. We hope you like this chapter._

_Disclaimer: The usual...don't own Annie, Auggie or any other element from Covert Affairs. Just our storyline and the universe we've created._

* * *

**-Chapter 3-**

In the week that followed Annie's first ASL lesson with Auggie, they had lunch together every day. They enjoyed each other's company and Auggie usually incorporated a little lesson in their meals. He was really impressed with how fast she was getting the hang of things. She still had a ways to go, but she had come a long way in just a few days. Friday they settled down at what had become 'their' table and Auggie set up his iPad and keyboard between them. After eating in silence for a few moments Annie reached for the keyboard.

"Wanna join me at Allen's Tavern for end-of-the-week-beers tonight? There'll be several people from the company there."

"I don't know. I don't know that many people and it'll probably be awkward." He looked insecure.

"It's a great opportunity to get to know people. Come on, we'll have fun."

"Let me think about it, okay?"

"Okay, but please come?" Annie smiled and put on her best 'begging puppy' face. Auggie nodded and reached for the keyboard again.

"Okay, I surrender. " Auggie held his hands up in defeat. Annie squealed with joy and smiled broadly. Auggie just shook his head and turned his attention back to his meal.

# # # # # # # # # # #

Allen's Tavern wasn't too far from Auggie's apartment so he decided to walk there. He'd been feeling nervous since he agreed to go to the bar with Annie. After checking his appearance in the full length mirror in his closet one final time, he realized it was time to go. He'd agreed to meet Annie outside Allen's at 6:30 and the clock on his wall said 6:10. He needed about 15 minutes to get to there, so he grabbed his wallet and keys and placed them in his messenger bag with his iPad and keyboard.

When he reached Allen's Tavern a little over 15 minutes later; Anne was waiting for him. He couldn't help but admire her from a distance; she was wearing a wrap dress that showed off her curves perfectly and she had her hair down. Soft curls framed her face and when she saw him approaching a wide smile spread across her face.

"Auggie," she signed. "I'm so glad you're here."

Auggie smiled and tried to look like he wasn't as nervous as he felt.

An hour later Auggie was having a great time. There were a couple of people from Linguistic Endeavors' ASL department present and one of them, Eric, was interpreting for him.

Annie was sitting across the table, chatting with Samantha and a couple of other people from her department. She was having an okay time, but she felt a bit pissed because she wasn't interpreting for Auggie. She'd expected to spend more time with him tonight, and although she was delighted that he seemed to be making some new friends she couldn't help feeling a bit left out. Suddenly an unfamiliar laugh caught her attention and she was surprised to see Auggie doubled over laughing out loud. It was the first sound she'd heard from him and she liked it. He had a nice laugh.

* * *

On Saturday, Annie enjoyed a lazy morning in bed. She'd turned on the TV in her bedroom and just dozed while watching a few episodes of Friends. She was halfway through the episode where Ross almost marries Emily in London when her cell phone warbled on her nightstand. It was a text message from Auggie.

"How do you feel about baseball?"

"That's an odd question. What's going on?"

"I have tickets for a ball game tomorrow and I was supposed to go with a friend of mine, but he can't come. Wanna go to the game with me?"

"Sure, sounds like fun. Who's playing?"

"Orioles vs. Cubs at Camden Yards up in Baltimore. I'm more of a White Sox fan, but I'm from Chicago, so I root for any team from my home town. My buddy's from Maryland so he's a die hard Orioles fan."

"I'll come. Should be a nice road trip too. Sounds like fun!"

"Awesome. I'll pick you up. Text me your address."

Annie texted Auggie her address and curled up in bed with a silly grin on her face; she was excited to be spending some alone time with him.

* * *

Auggie was very into the game. They had great seats and he focused intently, watching the action on the field like a hawk. He explained to her when they arrived that he liked to watch the umpire's signals to help him follow the game and as they waited for the game to start, he taught them to her one by one. As the game progressed, Annie found herself getting into it as well. She had never been a huge baseball fan but the live atmosphere and energy was amazing and she enjoyed spending time with Auggie. Today they used a notepad and a pen for communication when Annie's ASL skills didn't cut it; the iPad wasn't very practical since they didn't have a table in front of them. At the moment they were both very focused on the action on the field. The bases were loaded, the count was full and everyone was on their feet. The next thing Annie knew, the batter was called out and the whole place was chanting: "Bullshit!". She got caught up and joined in, laughing and pumping her fist. To her surprise, Auggie echoed her statement verbally. His voice was a deep baritone and although he definitely had a 'deaf accent', the word came out clearly. Annie's jaw dropped and she looked at Auggie with a surprised look on her face. He, on the other hand, seemed mortified, turned and started to leave. Annie caught his arm and pulled him back to his seat. She signed "please stay" and he sighed and put his messenger bag back down between his feet again. The mood was tense for the rest of the game and Annie was surprised when he drove straight to his place instead of dropping her off at her place, which would've been the natural thing to do. After he'd parked outside his building, he turned to her and slowly signed. "We need to talk." Annie nodded in agreement. He got out the notepad again.

"I'm sorry I reacted like I did. I was just shocked when you actually spoke since you've been so adamant about not speaking at all."

"I kind of shocked myself to be honest." He looked very self conscious.

"I like your voice." Her heart hurt at his incredulous expression. Who ever made him doubt himself so much?

"Whatever."

"Seriously, Auggie. Yes, you have a 'deaf accent', but it's not that bad. From what I could tell from that one word, anyway."

"Really?" he queried, not quite believing her.

"Really. You have a nice voice." Annie tried her best to look reassuring.

Auggie swallowed and hesitated for a few moments. Then, slowly and with concentration, he spoke.

"You like my voice, Annie?" He wasn't hard to understand. The 'deaf accent' was evident and he didn't finish pronouncing some words completely, but the words came out fairly clear. She'd never been so moved at someone saying her name before. It must have showed on her face because his features softened and the tenseness seemed to drain from him.

"Yes, Auggie. I do. And you're not hard to understand at all."

Auggie looked at her with a mixture of disbelief and hopefullness written all over his face. Annie reached for the notepad again.

"I'm serious Auggie. You don't sound bad at all. Why are you so self-conscious about speaking?"

"Long story." She could tell he wasn't going to elaborate. Part of her wanted to encourage him to continue but she didn't want to push him and possibly upset him.

"Thank you for today, Auggie. I had a wonderful time." She wrote, changing the subject. He smiled shyly in reply.

"Come inside?" he signed. She nodded.

Auggie's mind was racing as he led Annie up to his apartment. He couldn't believe he'd actually spoken to her. The first word had slipped out without him realizing it until it was late. When he'd turned to Annie and saw the shocked look on her face he was sure she was just as disgusted with his voice as his brothers. He'd been mortified and his initial thought had been to just leave. Annie had pulled him back into his seat and he'd realized he couldn't just abandon her in Baltimore. He was her ride after all. He hadn't caught much of the rest of the game; the mood had been tense. Annie saying she liked his voice and that he wasn't hard to understand had thrown him for a loop. He'd spent most of his life thinking he sounded horrible and shouldn't bother speaking because no one could understand him anyway.

They stepped out of the elevator and Auggie walked down the hall to his front door and unlocked it. He slid the heavy door open and allowed Annie to enter in front of him. Again he was grateful for his neat streak; his place was always presentable. He gestured for her to sit on the couch and quickly made a detour by the fridge to grab a couple of beers before he headed over to his desk to grab the iPad and keyboard. He handed Annie a beer, set his own on the coffee table and then he set up the iPad and keyboard. He had a swig of his beer and decided to initiate the conversation.

"I really don't sound horrible?"

"No Auggie, not at all. And as I said before; you're not hard to understand. What led you to believe that you sound horrible?"

"My four older brothers, and my parents."

Annie remained silent and waited for him to continue.

"I guess I should tell you about my family. I'm the youngest of five boys, and I grew up in Glencoe, Illinois. When I was about 18 months old, I contracted meningitis. It was touch and go for a while, but I pulled through. It also left me completely deaf." Annie nodded and squeezed his hand, encouraging him to go on. He typed lightening fast on the iPad keyboard, telling her all about how he'd felt like his parents thought he was broken and tried to fix him by insisting he'd learn how to read lips and learn how to speak. They'd pushed him hard and he'd seen the speech therapist several times a week. He told her all about how his four older brothers had tormented him, making fun of how he sounded and told him he was impossible to understand. He also felt that his parents were bothered by how he sounded.

"The thing was; I went to a boarding school for the deaf, so during the week, at school, I didn't need to speak. Everyone there knew how to sign. It was only an issue when I was home over the weekend and for breaks. I hated weekends and breaks; to me it meant enduring my brothers tormenting me and my parents constantly nagging me about how my speaking was never good enough. I felt much more at home at school."

"I can't believe your family put you through that."

"When I started middle school I told them I was done with speaking. It upset my parents. Time home became even more tense and I tried to avoid going home as much as possible. I haven't had much contact with my family since I graduated from high school and moved to DC to go to college."

"I'm sorry to hear that," Annie signed and wrapped her arm around Auggie. He reached for the keyboard again.

"I remember a conversation I had with my father during my senior year in high school. He tried to push me to start with speech therapy again, said it would be impossible for me to get a job without speaking. So far I've proved him wrong."

"But things would be easier if you spoke, it would make it easier for people to communicate with you."

"You think?"

"Yeah. I mean, you're good at reading lips and that app of yours is handy, but it's not the same as speaking. And you're good at it Auggie. All of that hard work when you were a kid wasn't for nothing. I'm just sorry your family has managed to convince you of the opposite."

They sat drinking their beers for a few moments. Annie glanced over and Auggie seemed to be deep in thought. A few moments more and he pulled the keyboard to him.

"I don't know, Annie. I made the decision a long time ago. I'm not sure if I could change now if I wanted to."

"Auggie, I believe in you and I believe that you can do whatever you put your mind to. I understand that it's a big decision to make and I don't expect you to make it quickly. Just know that I'll support you no matter what your decision is."

A small smile played across his lips as he read her words. He pushed the keyboard away and turned to her. He gathered his courage again and spoke to her as he reached out and caressed her cheek.

"Thank you, Annie." He said simply.

She leaned her cheek into his hand and smiled up at him as she closed the gap between them. He met her halfway and their lips crashed together almost of their own will. In one swift movement he pulled her onto his lap and she straddled him willingly. He slowly ran his hands up her arms, raising them over her head then made short work of her top, tossing it aside. She arched her back into his hands as he weighed each breast in turn.

"Beautiful…" he spoke again, looking into her eyes, hoping to convey all he was feeling in that moment within his.

Annie smiled and slid off his lap slowly. She took his hands in hers and pulled him up and off the couch. Wrapping her arms around his neck, she pulled his face down to hers and proceeded to kiss him senseless. He ran his hands down her sides then lifted her up, prompting her to wrap her legs around his slim waist. With a mischievous twinkle in his eye, he carried her up the few stairs to his bedroom. No more words were necessary that night.

* * *

_Hope you liked it :o) Please let us know what you think in a review._


	4. Chapter 4

_Thank you so much for your feedback to the previous chapter - you all rock! :o)_

_We finally managed to finish chapter 4. Both EmeraldEyedPhoenix and I have been busy lately, we've just not had the time to write we've hoped for. We've got lots of ideas for the coming chapter, so if our schedules permit the wait for chapter 5 will be shorter._

_Thanks to my friend and co-writer EmeraldEyedPhoenix for putting your awesome touch on this chapter. _

_DISCLAIMER: We don't own Annie, Auggie or any other element from Covert Affairs. Just our universe, storyline and the characters we're creating._

* * *

**-Chapter 4-**

When Annie woke up Monday morning she was disoriented; until she turned and looked right at Auggie. He was fast asleep on his back, one hand tucked under his head and the other draped across his stomach. The sheets only came up to his waist and Annie couldn't help admiring his body for a bit; he was in impressive shape. She ran a hand up his well defined midsection then leaned over him and placed a soft kiss on his lips. He barely stirred, so Annie deepened the kiss. She felt his lips curl up in a smile beneath her own and he pulled back slightly to look into her eyes. His expression was open and loving, even if neither of them had put their feelings in to words yet. She had never known someone whose eyes conveyed so much. They held a promise of many more mornings like this and of kisses to come. He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close to him and then it was his turn to kiss Annie senseless. Their kissing soon escalated and Annie found herself pressed into the soft mattress under Auggie's lean but muscular frame. When they broke apart some time later, Annie glanced over at the alarm clock on Auggie's nightstand and realized that they must have overslept and thanks to their morning make out session, they were running extremely late. They definitely didn't have time for Auggie to take Annie home so she could change and get her car like they'd planned the evening before.

"Shit!" Annie exclaimed as she sat up in bed. Auggie looked at her with a confused look on his face. She pointed to the alarm clock. When he saw the time, he was up and moving with Annie close behind.

# # # # # # # # # # # #

An hour later Auggie pulled in to the parking garage below the building that housed the Linguistic Endeavors offices. He parked in his assigned parking space and they hurried to the entrance. During the elevator ride up to their floor, Annie studied her appearance in the mirror that lined one of the walls of the elevator. She had borrowed a black v-neck sweater from Auggie, it was slightly too big for her, but with her dark jeans it made a more office-acceptable outfit than the t-shirt she'd worn the previous day. She had pulled her hair into a ponytail and had tried to make herself look presentable with the little makeup she had in her purse. It wasn't the worst walk of shame look she'd ever sported, but she knew Samantha, the nosiest person in her department, would pick up on it. She glanced over at Auggie, who of course looked much more together. He was wearing a pair of navy blue dress slacks that fit him perfectly and a tailored white button down shirt with light blue stripes. He reached over and gave Annie's hand a squeeze, sensing her unease. She smiled weakly at him. As they stepped off the elevator Auggie turned to Annie and signed; "See you at lunch?"

"Absolutely. At noon?" Annie signed back, nodding. Auggie gave her the thumbs up and after placing a quick, almost shy, kiss on her lips he turned and walked down the hall towards his office.

# # # # # # # # # # # # # #

When Annie settled in behind her desk a few minutes later Samantha was there in an instant. She perched on the edge of Annie's desk and studied her appearance from head to toe. Then she crossed her arms and looked straight at Anne.

"So, who's the guy?"

"What? There's no guy." Annie feigned innocence, hoping Samantha would back off. She had no such luck.

"Come on Annie, we've worked together for a long time. I know you and I know that this is a walk-of-shame outfit. You wouldn't show up at work in sneakers and an oversized sweater under normal circumstances. Spill."

"It's Auggie."

"Auggie? Who's that?"

"Sheesh, do I have to spell it out to you? August Anderson, Head of IT."

"You hooked up with August Anderson? The deaf-mute IT guy? Why?"

"Why not? He's a great guy. And in case you haven't noticed; he's pretty damn hot."

"I just don't get why you want to be with a guy you have to pass notes to in order to have a conversation."

"He's been teaching me sign language actually. I like it and I'm getting pretty good at it."

"Still, there are plenty of other guys out there that can hear and at least say your name. You shouldn't have to settle, Annie."

"Settle?" Annie gritted out through her teeth, turning around to face Samantha head on. "Not that it's any of your business, but I'm not settling at all. There may be plenty of other guys out there but they're not Auggie. If anything, he's a better man than a lot of the "other guys" you talk about. He's a good man and he's good to me and I couldn't ask for more than that. I like him a lot and if you have a problem with that it's your problem, not mine." Annie turned her attention to her computer and started browsing through her email, to see if she had anything that needed her immediate attention waiting for her, hoping Samantha would take a hint and go away. No such luck.

"Pity. Well if you want to take up with some kind of cripple that's your loss. Just leaves more real men for the rest of us." Samantha stated; the last part in a sing-song voice. Annie's hand itched to slap the smile off of her smug face but she managed to hold her temper. She was at work after all.

"You see, that's the difference between you and me Sam, I'm not shallow enough to judge people by things they have no control over and have no bearing on who they are as a person. Auggie is very real, very intelligent man who happens to have a disability. He is by no means a "cripple". Please don't use that word around me again." Annie turned back to her computer once again, effectively dismissing her coworker. Sam started to say something again but instead turned and beat a hasty retreat. Annie looked up in time to see the director of their department coming up the hall and had to stifle a laugh. She turned back to her work muttering decidedly bad sentiments in several languages about her so called "friend".

# # # # # # # # # # # # # # # #

Auggie's day was busier than he'd expected, a server had crashed over the weekend and now he had to get it back up and running and salvage as much of the contents as possible. He was glad he'd implemented a new backup system right after he started, the old one had been filled with holes and he had no doubt that more files would've been lost if the old system had still been in place.

He'd managed to slip out of the office for a quick lunch with Annie at noon, but apart from that he hadn't taken any breaks. It was getting close to four in the afternoon and he felt a slight headache building in the back of his head. He decided to head to the break room and grab a cup of coffee and a power bar. Just as he was about to leave his office the inter office IM system icon flashed on his screen with an incoming message. It was from Stuart Heatherton, one of the guys on the IT support crew. He was young, only a year out of college, and Auggie guessed he was half Indian, judging from his dark hair and eyes as well as his complexion. Auggie liked Stu; he was a quiet person, did his job well and didn't call much attention to himself. He clicked the flashing icon.

**_Stuart Heatherton: _**_Got a minute boss?_

**_August Anderson: _**_Sure, what do you need Stu?_

**_Stuart Heatherton:_**_ Um…I'm not sure how to tell you this; I overheard a conversation between Annie Walker and Samantha Richards this morning. I guess I should congratulate you; you've got yourself a keeper in Annie. She really stood up for you._

Auggie was puzzled; why would Annie have to stand up for him?

**_August Anderson:_**_ Why?_

**_Stuart Heatherton:_**_ Well, Samantha has a reputation for being the nosiest woman around here and she's pretty judgmental too. I guess she picked up on Annie's "walk of shame" outfit and started questioning her about who she'd hooked up with. Annie tired to evade her, but when it was clear she couldn't get away she confessed to hooking up with you._

**_August Anderson:_**_ That still doesn't explain why Annie had to stand up for me. Yes, we spent the night together. So what? We're both adults and we don't work in the same department, so we're not breaking any inter-office dating policies._

**_Stuart Heatherton:_**_ Samantha thinks Annie can do better than you. She started questioning her about why she'd want to go out with a guy she has to pass notes to in order to have a conversation. That she shouldn't settle for a "cripple"._

**_August Anderson: _**_What did she tell her?_

**_Stuart Heatherton: _**_That you've been teaching her sign language and she likes that. That you're a great guy, you're great to her and you're not a cripple. She got really upset with Samantha's use of that term and I think that if they'd been outside the office, she would've slapped her. Office decorum kept her from it. You should be proud of her._

**_August Anderson: _**_Thanks for telling me man. I appreciate it. I'm going to get some coffee. Do you want anything?_

**_Stuart Heatherton: _**_No problem boss, I just thought you should know. No need for coffee for me, but thanks for asking._

Auggie closed the IM application and headed down to the break room to grab a cup of coffee. He had an idea who Samantha was; he'd seen her talk to Annie a few times and Annie always seemed to tense up around her. She was a rather non-descript woman in her early thirties; average height, a few pounds overweight, mousy blonde hair and she generally wore her clothes a size too small. His disability meant that he generally didn't pick up on office gossip, unless someone told him. Usually it didn't bother him, it was one less distraction, but now he was curious about whether there were other rumors about him and Annie out there.

A wave of anger cursed through him as he walked back to his office, coffee in hand, he hated that Annie had been put on the spot like that because of his disability. He hated when people treated him differently and it upset him even more that his girlfriend had to put up with prejudice like that. When he thought of the things Annie had said, a warm feeling passed through him. Annie was his girlfriend. They hadn't really talked, but what she'd said to Samantha made it clear that she felt the same way about him that he felt about her. It made him immensely happy to know that Annie was proud to be with him.

Just after five in the afternoon Annie walked into Auggie's office; he had promised to give her a ride home since they hadn't had time for her to pick up her car on the way to work. He made quick work of logging off his computer and put his iPad, keyboard and a couple of folders into his leather messenger bag before he slung it over his shoulder. After he made sure he had his iPhone and keys he walked over to Annie, who was leaning against the doorframe, watching him. He wrapped his arms around her and kissed her senseless.

Annie was shocked; his kisses as they parted by the elevators that morning and after lunch had been quick, almost shy. This one was the exact opposite and that he did it right in the middle of their workplace was totally unexpected. She noticed the look in his eyes; they were shining with love and something she couldn't quite place, maybe gratitude or pride. After she managed to compose her self she signed to him.

"What was that for?"

"Not here, okay? Somewhere private." Auggie held his hand out to her and she laced her fingers with his. He didn't let go of her hand until they reached his car. As soon as they were both settled in, he turned to Annie.

"Why didn't you tell me your co-worker gave you shit about going out with me this morning?" he signed.

"How do you know?" Annie signed back. Auggie started to sign back but stopped and pulled a notepad from the center console where they'd kept it since their first date. He wrote quickly and handed it to Annie.

"Stu told me. He was working on a computer not far from your desk and he overheard the whole thing. You don't have to stand up for me Annie, I'm capable of standing up for myself."

"I know you are, but I'm not going to take that kind of shit from anyone to my face. Sam's just narrow minded and nosey. I've never really liked her to be honest." Annie wrote back.

"Stu said she's the office gossip?"

"Definitely. She's always spreading rumors and sticking her nose in other people's business." Auggie rolled his eyes as he read and chuckled. Annie grinned, enjoying his baritone voice as it rumbled in his chest. Though he used his voice more and more around her, it still gave her a thrill to hear it.

"She's not the first narrow minded person I've dealt with and she won't be the last. I don't really care, let her think whatever she wants. I'm sorry she gave you a hard time because of me though."

"Don't apologize. I actually enjoyed setting her straight." Annie leaned over and kissed Auggie soundly.

# # # # # # # # # # # #

Over dinner later that evening, they made plans for the coming weekend. Annie suggested going on a hike at a local park and packing a picnic lunch. Auggie was all for it and on Saturday, they headed out to C & O Canal National Park, picnic lunch and hiking gear in hand.

Mother nature cooperated and they enjoyed a beautiful morning hiking along one of the more secluded trails. They chatted about the flora and wildlife they saw as they went. Annie was eager to learn the signs for the things they came across and Auggie happily obliged. She'd become proficient enough for them to carry on a conversation easily and the more confident in her signing she became; the more of her personality came through. He watched her examine a bug on an oak tree and wondered, not for the first time, what he did to deserve this amazing woman in his life. She beckoned him over and he followed her pointing finger to a large pinkish bug that seemed to be leaning back and coming out of its dry tan shell.

"What's that?" he signed.

Annie finger spelled "cicada".

"Cool." Auggie smiled.

"It's beautiful. They make a lot of noise."

"Really?" Auggie looked genuinely surprised. Annie nodded emphatically.

"They make a loud, fast clicking noise high in the trees to attract a mate."

"You can hear it that high up?" Auggie asked with an incredulous expression to which Annie nodded again.

"Maybe we'll catch one and you can hold it while it makes the sound and feel it."

"Maybe." Auggie signed with a chuckle.

They continued down the trail, chatting and enjoying each other's company until a loud growl from Auggie's stomach caught Annie's attention.

"Hungry?" Auggie grinned sheepishly and nodded. They decided to stop and each their lunch in a small clearing that was just ahead. Annie laid out their blanket near a tree and laid out their light lunch of sandwiches and fruit. As they ate, Auggie noticed a squirrel searching the ground on the other side of the clearing. He drew Annie's attention to it and she leaned against him as they watched it scurry around looking for acorns. Suddenly Annie looked up into the branches above. Auggie looked at her questioningly.

"I hear a cardinal up there somewhere." she signed.

"How do you know that's what it is?"

"I know its chirp." Annie signed, finger spelling the last word. Auggie just gave her his signature puzzled expression. "Each kind of bird has its own chirp and some are more recognizable than others. Each bird has several different calls that mean different things. That's how birds communicate with each other." Annie explained.

He nodded and wrapped his arms around her as he looked up into the leafy canopy above them. It occurred to her that he must have never known what she had just told him. Most of the time, she didn't even register his disability. She simply didn't see him that way. He was just Auggie and he was perfect as far as she was concerned. It was times like this that it hit her like a ton of bricks that he really had no concept of something that she took for granted every day. It hurt her heart but no one ever said life was fair. She felt his arms tighten around her and looked up into his eyes to find him returning her gaze knowingly. She stretched up and kissed his lips gently then nestled back into his chest. They sat that way for a time, just enjoying the peace surrounding them. Just as Annie's eyes were starting to droop closed, he took a deep breath and spoke slowly, taking time to enunciate each word the best he could.

"I love you, Annie."

Annie sat up and turned to face him, her heart so full at hearing those words it felt as if it would burst. His eyes almost glowed with the intensity of his emotion in that moment and a hopeful smile turned up one corner of his lips.

"I love you, Auggie." Annie both signed and spoke to him.

A beautiful smile stole across his face, lighting his features as he cradled her cheeks with both hands and leaned in slowly, claiming her lips as his own. His kiss was gentle but clearly possessive, as they seemed to meld as one.

# # # # # # # # # # # # #

They spent the rest of the afternoon exploring the trail and their feelings for each other. That night as they lay close together in the dark, his arm holding her snugly to him, she felt his hand slide under hers and realized he was pressing the one-handed "I Love You" sign into her palm. She pressed her hand to his in the same sign then threaded her fingers through his, squeezing his hand. He squeezed her hand back in reply then buried his face in her neck, inhaling deeply. They fell asleep in each other's arms; completely spent and blissful in the knowledge of their love for one another.

* * *

_Guess what sign the cover pic for this story is...? Yep, it's the one handed "I Love You" sign._

_Thanks for reading :o) __Please leave us a review and let us know what you think._


	5. Chapter 5

_Thanks for the reviews and other feedback to chapter 4 (and the rest of the story)._

_Here's chapter 5. Thanks to my friend __**EmeraldEyedPhoenix**__ for your hard work and amazing input - as I've said before, the story wouldn't be the same without your insight and talent. Xxxx_

_Also a big thanks from both of us to __**call2wrshp**__ for the inspiration you provided in that PM. The next few chapters are greatly inspired by that! :o)_

_DISCLAIMER: We don't own Annie, Auggie or any other element of Covert Affairs that might appear in the story. Just our characters and the universe we've created._

* * *

**-Chapter 5-**

A Saturday in early September, Annie and Auggie were spending a relaxing afternoon at his place. Over the month and a half since they spent their first night together; Annie had practically moved in with him. It has been a gradual process, they hadn't really discussed it, but Auggie had cleared out some closet space for her and she had left a small supply of her toiletries in his bathroom so she didn't have to lug them back and forth. They preferred the privacy of Auggie's apartment; Annie lived in her older sister's guesthouse and her sister had a tendency of letting herself in without knocking, which had caused a couple of awkward moments.

Auggie had his laptop in his lap and was catching up on his Twitter timeline when he noticed a new email in his personal inbox. He opened Outlook and couldn't stop a sharp intake of breath when he saw the name of the sender; Ashton Anderson. The subject line simply said "Hi". Ashton was his oldest brother and he'd been his worst tormentor during his childhood years. The last time he'd seen Ashton was at their grandfather's funeral several years earlier and that time they'd barely acknowledged each other's presence. They didn't keep in touch whatsoever, they weren't even friends on Facebook, so Auggie was really surprised to receive an email from him. His initial reaction was to just delete it, but curiosity got the best of him and he opened it. It was a short message and Auggie didn't quite know what to make of it.

_Hi bro,_

_Long time, no see. Hope you're doing well. I'll be in DC for a few days for business next week, I arrive Tuesday and fly back to Chicago Friday afternoon, and I was hoping we could meet and catch up a bit. Maybe we could have lunch or dinner? Or I can just come by your place if you prefer that. Let me know as soon as possible._

_Ash_

Annie looked up from her paper, she'd noticed that Auggie inhaled sharply and the tenseness radiating from him piqued her curiosity. His jaw was set hard and she couldn't quite read the expression in his eyes. It was an odd mix of anger, sadness and something she couldn't place. She reached over and touched his arm to get his attention, he looked up from his computer.

"What's wrong?" she signed.

"Nothing," he signed back, turning his attention back to the laptop. Annie touched his arm again.

"I call bullshit," she signed. "Something is bothering you, it's obvious. Your expression tells me that you're anything but okay."

Auggie sighed and turned the computer toward Annie and pointed at the email from his brother. Annie quickly read it and the Auggie yanked the laptop back. He was about to delete the email when Annie grabbed his arm and pulled his hand away from the keyboard. He looked aggravated and tried to shake her hand off. She reluctantly let go and he put the hand in his lap instead. Annie quickly signed to Auggie;

"Is that email from one of your brothers or your father?"

"My oldest brother. He was the worst bully of them, I haven't seen him since Grandpa's funeral and that was years ago. I have no intention of meeting him and I really don't feel like getting back in touch with that asshole." Auggie became more and more animated as he signed and he looked angry.

"Don't you think things could be different now that you're all adults? I understand you're hurt about the way your family treated you as a kid, but that was years ago. Why not give him a chance?"

Auggie didn't answer immediately; he just shrugged and looked away from Annie. She touched his arm to get his attention again.

"I won't push you, but just think about it, okay? I'll go with you if you want. I might not be a sign language pro, but I'm getting pretty good at it, so I think I'll manage to interpret for you if you want me to. Or does your brother know how to sign?"

Auggie shook his head and signed back to Annie. "Never bothered to learn."

"How much older than you is he?"

"He just turned 45, he was almost 13 when I was born. He left for college when I was five, we only saw each other occasionally on weekends and for holidays. When he was home he was mostly out and about with his friends. We didn't really communicate much."

"That's quite an age gap. Danielle and I are only four years apart and even that felt like a lot sometimes when we were kids." Annie paused for a moment. "Would it be so bad to have dinner with him? Like I said, I'll go with you and if it's horrible we can just leave."

Auggie shrugged. "I guess you have a point. I don't really have high hopes, but I'll give it a chance. Will Tuesday evening work for you?"

"It will. I'll be right there with you," Annie assured him, giving his arm a squeeze. Auggie smiled weakly, he didn't seem convinced, but he clicked "reply" instead of "delete" and typed a quick reply.

_Hi,_

_All's good here. My girlfriend and I will join you for dinner Tuesday night if that works for you. I'll make reservations at Luigi's; it's a small Italian restaurant not far from my place. See you Tuesday at 7 PM._

_Auggie_

He showed it to Annie, who gave him the thumbs up, and then he clicked "send".

* * *

"Ready for this?" Annie asked Auggie as they walked down the street toward Luigi's where they were meeting Ashton. Auggie was nervous, more nervous than he cared to admit to Annie; he had a strong feeling she knew though. They were running a bit late, Auggie had been caught up at work and he'd left almost an hour later than he'd planned.

"As ready as I can be. I hope he manages to act civil." Auggie signed back.

"He's a 45 year old man. Have some faith in him."

Auggie didn't reply, he simply grasped her hand and laced his fingers whit hers and they walked into the restaurant hand in hand. Annie squeezed his hand as they approached the hostess.

"Anderson, reservation for three," Annie told her.

"Your company is already here," she replied as she grabbed two menus. "Follow me." She led them through the restaurant to a table in the back, a little bit away from the other diners. Auggie was slightly relieved they'd have some privacy. At the same time he'd wished they'd been seated close to the door so he could escape without stalking through the entire restaurant if things got ugly.

Annie noticed that he tensed up as they walked through the restaurant and approached a table in the back where a man was seated. There was no doubt that the man sitting at the table was related to Auggie; he had the same chiseled jaw and dark brown eyes as Auggie. Ashton was a few pounds heavier than Auggie and his eyes were covered by a pair of steel rimmed glasses. His dark hair was cut short and graying at his temples. He pulled Auggie into an awkward man hug and then he turned to Annie.

"Auggie's girlfriend I presume? I'm Ashton Anderson, Auggie's oldest brother."

Annie shook his hand and nodded. "Annie Walker. Nice to meet you."

They took their seats and started perusing their menus. A waitress came and took their drink orders and they kept studying their menus; the awkward silence lasted until she came back with their drinks and took their food orders.

# # # # # # # # # # # # #

"You know I got married five years ago, right?" Ashton asked Auggie.

Auggie nodded. Their mother had told him in an email that his brother, the perpetual bachelor, had finally met the love of his life and had decided to settle down. She'd asked Auggie to come to the wedding but he'd refused.

"Evelyn is finally pregnant. We've been trying since we got married, fertility treatment, IVF…the works basically. We'd almost given up hope…"

"Congratulations," Auggie signed. Annie translated.

"Thanks," Asthon said. "The thing is…they did some tests… and we're carriers of this recessive gene thing. It means there's a 25% chance the baby will be born deaf." his voice trailed off. Auggie looked taken aback for a moment.

"Okay," Auggie signed. "That explains why you called me. You need advice from your deaf brother that has first hand experience, right?" Annie struggled to keep up and interpret.

"Something like that," Ashton sighed.

"So, what's the problem?" Auggie signed, incredulous.

"The problem? The problem is my son could be handicapped!" Aston sputtered.

"It's not the end of the world you know. Your kid will be fine as long as you accept him and his disability and don't repeat the mistakes Mom and Dad made."

"Evey and I are scared, we don't know the first thing about raising a special needs child. I thought maybe you could help us to start learning sign language now, in case."

"Oh now you want to learn? You, who never saw any use in learning to sign, who thought I should just speak like mom and dad did." Auggie signed, shaking his head in disgust.

"I'm sorry." Ashton signed. Auggie raised an eyebrow at his brother. Apparently he did learn a few signs other than the middle finger after all.

"I know I was an asshole back then. I was young and stupid. We all grow up and learn that we didn't know half as much as we thought. You're my brother and we barely know each other. I want to change that, if you'll let me."

Auggie studied his oldest brother for a few moments. He looked as sincere as he'd ever seen him. Maybe Annie was right, maybe he did deserve a chance. Auggie took a deep breath and made his decision. He looked his brother in the eye and nodded.

"Thanks bro. I'll make it up to you, I promise." Ash said, meeting Auggie's gaze to prove his sincerity.

"You don't have to make it up to me, just move forward." Auggie signed, pausing to let Annie catch up. "Do you have an iPad?"

"No, why?" Ash asked, puzzled.

"Get one. We can practice signing with FaceTime since we live so far apart. I'll email you info on an adapter to view it on your tv screen at home."

"Awesome, I'll get one as soon as I get home." Ash beamed and signed 'thank you'. Auggie nodded and retuned his smile.

# # # # # # # # # # # # # # #

A short time later, Auggie excused himself to use the restroom. Moments after he left the table Ashton turned to Annie.

"So, what's a beautiful woman like you doing with my brother?" he asked bluntly. Annie was shocked for a moment, trying to process if he'd actually said what she thought she heard.

"Excuse me?" she asked sharply.

"You have problems with your hearing too?"

"No!"

"I just can't wrap my head around why a beautiful woman like you wants to be with a disabled guy, that's all."

"Is that how you think of your brother? Is his disability all you see? For your information Auggie is so much more than that, his disability doesn't define him. He's a very capable, intelligent person that happens to not be able to hear. He's no less because of that, if anything, he's more because he's had to overcome attitudes like yours and outdated stereotypes all his life. I'm reminded everyday how lucky I am to have him in my life."

Ashton snorted, pissing Annie off even more.

"You know, Auggie told me a little bit about his childhood and how your parents pressured him to go to speech therapy and how you and his other brothers made fun of his voice. Part of me thought he was exaggerating, that no family would put their child through that, but judging from your attitude I'm starting to think he might have been downplaying how bad things were."

"I just think you could do better than my brother, that's all. Why be with a guy that'll never be able to provide for you?"

"What are you talking about? Auggie probably makes twice as much money as I do, not that it matters to me. Do you have any idea what your brother does for a living?"

"Not really. He has always been a geek and I know he studied computers in college. I guess he's a programmer or something like that."

"You're certainly underestimating him. He's the Head of IT at Linguistic Endeavors, it's one of the leading translation agencies in the US."

Ashton looked stunned. "Really?" he sputtered out.

"Yes, really. Here's his business card." Annie pulled Auggie's business card out of her wallet and held it out to Ashton. He hesitantly took it from her and studied it with an incredulous look on his face.

"Wow, I had no idea. He's done well for himself."

"And all without speaking too." Annie pointed out. "If you want to have any kind of relationship with your brother, I suggest you start by changing your way of thinking."

"I guess you're right." Ash acquiesced.

"Wouldn't you want your son to have a good job and get married to a good woman someday? Would you think he'd deserve any less if he happened to be deaf?" Ash was silent, her words sinking in. It was at that moment that Auggie returned to the table. He saw Ash's slightly stunned expression and immediately signed to Annie, asking what they were talking about.

"I just pointed out the obvious." Annie signed and spoke in reply and Ash nodded. Auggie looked back and forth between them a few times but decided not to push further.

# # # # # # # # # # # # # # #

They finished their meals soon after and said they're goodbyes. Annie and Auggie strolled along, enjoying the night air on their way back home. After deliberating with himself a bit, Auggie asked Annie what she and Ash had talked about while he was in the restroom.

"He asked my why I was with someone like you." Annie signed, answering him honestly. Auggie's expression darkened.

"What did you tell him?"

"I told him that he needs an attitude adjustment and hopefully I made him rethink some things." Annie signed, grinning. Auggie laughed out loud at the thought of Annie setting his brother straight.

"I told him you're so much more than he gives you credit for and I'm lucky to be with you." Auggie surprised her by pulling her to him and kissing her soundly.

"I'm lucky to be with you too." He signed, his eyes twinkling in the in the glow of the streetlights. He threaded his fingers with hers once again and they walked hand in hand the rest of the way to Auggie's apartment building.

Later, as they sat together on the couch and settled in to watch a movie, Auggie turned to Annie.

"I'm curious, what did you think if Ash?"

"I think he has a good heart, like you. He just needs to learn what's really important and what really matters."

"Very true. Thank you for talking me into going, and for interpreting."

"No problem. I can't believe he never learned to sign." Annie signed, shaking her head.

"Like he said, he was an asshole." Auggie chuckled.

"Have you given any more thought to speaking more?" Annie asked.

"I thought we were past this?"

"I thought you were going to think about it?" Annie countered.

"Why are you pushing this issue again?"

"I'm not really; I was just thinking that it would have been easier tonight if you had. You would have showed your brother too." Annie watched Auggie's jaw clench and his features darken.

"Just because I say a few words to you now and then doesn't mean that I'm just going to start speaking like a hearing man. That's not who I am." His signing was more forceful than she'd ever seen before, as if he was yelling at her with his signing.

"I know, I just…"

"No Annie, if you're still asking me this question then you don't know. I made my decision a long time ago and I thought you understood that."

"I understand that you're stubborn as hell!" Annie yelled at him, forgetting to sign, but he understood her nonetheless.

"I thought you accepted me as I am, but I see now that you're just like my family and I'll never be good enough for you either."

"Auggie, no. That's not true and you know it!"

"If it's always going to come back to me speaking or not, then you can just leave now."

"If you'd rather have me leave than face the fact that you're stupid pride is standing in your way, then I'm gone." Auggie's face reddened at her words.

"Get out!" He yelled, his voice cracking with anger.

Annie had never heard him scream like that and she was up off the couch in a heartbeat. She grabbed her purse and keys and left without looking back. Once in her car, the tears started to come. Tears of fear and heartbreak at the thought that she might have lost the best thing that had happened to her in a long time.

Auggie looked out of his window and wondered why she was just sitting in her car. Several times he started towards the door to stop her from leaving but something, he couldn't even figure out what, kept holding him back. He finally decided to go after her, but by the time he got down the stairs and out the door, she was already gone.

* * *

_Stay tuned for chapter 6 - we're working on it! (Small teaser: Another one of Auggie's brothers enters the storyline.)_

_We love reviews, so please let us know what you think. :o)_


	6. Chapter 6

_Thanks for the reviews, follows and favorites so far! We appreciate them a lot. :o)_

_Again **EmeraldEyedPhoenix**'s insight and talent has been invaluable. We're both enjoying writing this story a lot. This is my first collaboration and we've had some great brain-storming sessions which has been crucial to getting the story to where it is today. Thanks hon - looking forward to writing the rest of the story with you. XOXO_

_Anyone else love the CA season 4 premiere? Looks like we're in for one heck of a ride this season - lots of secrets and twists and turns. So glad A&A are back! :o)_

_DISCLAIMER: We don't own Annie, Auggie or any other character or element we've borrowed from Covert Affairs. Just the characters and universe we've created._

* * *

**-Chapter 6-**

Almost a week had passed since Auggie had blown up at Annie and they still weren't speaking. Part of Auggie regretted not going after her that evening, but at the same time he was hurt by the way she kept pushing him about speaking more. Over the past few weeks he'd become more comfortable around Annie, he trusted her and he found himself speaking a little around her. He still wasn't comfortable with speaking around just anyone, it didn't feel right and he was comfortable with things the way they were. That Annie didn't accept him like he thought she did made him question their relationship. He loved Annie, he really did, and in many ways she was the best thing that had happened to him in a very long time. Still, if she wasn't okay with him not speaking, he didn't see a future for them.

# # # # # # # # # # # # #

Annie was devastated and heartbroken and she had done everything in her power to avoid running into Auggie for the past week. She cursed herself for getting involved with someone she worked with, seeing Auggie almost every day made her realize how much she missed him. She loved Auggie and part of her desperately wanted to get back together with him. What stopped her was his temper; it actually scared her a bit and she wondered why he got so upset by a simple question. She hadn't broached the subject since the night after the ballgame. He'd said he'd think about it and Annie had decided to not push him. It was his decision after all, but she had a hard time understanding why he was so reluctant about speaking since he was so good at it. She had no doubts it would make his life easier.

To make matters worse, her period was more than a week late and it worried her. She was hardly late, and on the rare occasions she was it usually was only by a few days. Not more than a week. She had reason to be worried too; she and Auggie had unprotected sex once. He'd run out of condoms and she didn't have any either. How could she have been so stupid?

* * *

Monday evening Auggie was home alone, the TV was on, but he wasn't really paying attention to it. He was miserable and missed Annie. Suddenly the flashing lamp by his door caught his attention and he got to his feet and walked over to the door. He checked his peephole. The hallway appeared to be empty. "Damn kids." he thought and headed back to the couch, figuring it was the kids in the bigger apartment across the hall that were playing in the hallway again. Just as he sat down the lamp flashed again. Aggravated, Auggie got up and yanked the door open without checking the peephole. He would set the damn kids straight. There were no kids in sight, but his twin brother Allistair was outside his door, sitting in his wheelchair with a pizza in his lap. He was still in uniform, but he'd left his jacket, tie and beret in his car.

"Whoa, relax there," Allistair signed with an amused grin on his face. Auggie had always been easy to rile up.

"Sorry bro, I thought it was the kids across the hall. They've been entertaining themselves with ringing doorbells and running away lately. What's up? I didn't expect to see you today."

"Unexpected meeting at Capitol Hill. Figured I'd swing by and say hi since I was in the area. Can I come in?"

"Sorry," Auggie signed, as he stepped aside and allowed his brother to wheel past him. Auggie grabbed the pizza from his lap and put it on the coffee table before he headed into the kitchen to grab plates and beers.

When he returned to the living area Allistair had transferred from his wheelchair to the couch. Auggie placed the beers and plates on the table and settled in to the armchair across from him. They ate in silence for a few minutes. Auggie was hungry and he wolfed down a couple of slices of pizza quickly.

"Thanks for the pizza Al," Auggie signed after he had a drink of his beer. "I was starving."

"I can see that. I talked to Ash yesterday. Thanks for taking the time to meet him, he really appreciated it and it meant a lot to him that you agreed to teach him and Evey to sign."

"Figured I'd give him a chance. Even if their kid turns out to be fine, knowing sign will be useful for him. He might actually start to communicate with me."

"Believe it or not Ash, Lucas and Ethan have matured a lot. They have all expressed that they regret treating you like they did."

"Well, why don't they tell me that?"

"It's easier said than done and you haven't exactly reached out either."

Auggie sighed and rolled his eyes, but he didn't respond. Instead he grabbed another slice of pizza.

"Where's this gorgeous girlfriend you've been bragging about? I was hoping to meet her." Allistair changed the subject.

"It's complicated."

"Seriously Aug? That's what 14-year olds put as their relationship status on Facebook when they've argued with their girlfriend. You're a 32-year-old man. What's going on?"

"We argued and I kicked her out. Happend the same evening Ash was here."

"Why?"

"Long story."

"I'm not in a hurry. Spill it." Suddenly the no-nonsense Captain Anderson was very present. Allistair wasn't about to let Auggie off the hook. Auggie sighed and leaned back in his chair.

"Not long after I met Annie she asked me why I don't speak. I told her an abridged version of my childhood and she let it go then. Then we went to this ballgame together. The referee made what most of the stadium seemed to thing was a wrong call and I got so engaged that I actually yelled "bullshit". Annie heard it of course. I was mortified. Wanted to get out of there, but I was her ride, I couldn't leave her there. Later that evening, after we got back to DC, she told me she liked my voice and that I'm actually good at speaking. She even got me to say a few more words and she looked like she really meant it."

"Well, she's right you know. For a completely deaf kid you spoke pretty well."

"Anyway, she started pushing me about speaking more, said it would make my life easier…you know… I told her I'd think about it, but I wasn't' sure I wanted to change. That I'm comfortable with the way things are. After that she left it alone. Until Tuesday evening, after we had dinner with Ash."

"What did she say?"

"Asked if I'd put more thought into speaking. Said it would've made things easier during dinner, I know she was struggling a bit to keep up and interpret for me."

"She couldn't have picked a worse time to bring it up, could she?" Al asked with an empathic look on his face.

"No she couldn't. I don't think she meant to hurt me, but at the time it stung. I was already pretty emotional and it brought back all kinds of feelings and memories. I just told her that if it was going to come back to me speaking again and again she should just leave. I actually yelled 'Get out.' at her. She walked out and I haven't heard from her since."

"Do you love her?" Auggie looked up at his brother for a moment then nodded hesitantly.

"Then get that stubborn head of yours out of your ass and give her a call."

"I think she should call me. She's the one who should apologize."

"I think you both have some apologizing to do, but if you don't want to lose her you should take the first step."

"I guess you have a point."

"You know I do. I'm older and wiser than you."

"Yeah, you've got about 15 minutes more wisdom than me. That really makes a difference."

"Massive difference," Allistair signed with a grin on his face. Auggie laughed, for what felt like the first time in weeks.

"Seriously bro, you need to patch things up with Annie and then both of you should come home for Thanksgiving."

"No." Auggie actually spoke the word forcefully.

"Come on, you gave Ash a chance, you should give the rest of them a chance too."

"I'll think about it, ok?"

"Yeah, ok. I really hope you do. Mom and dad ask about you a lot, you know." Auggie flashed the sign for 'bullshit'. "No, really they do." Auggie just shook his head.

"You and I both know they made mistakes. But that doesn't mean they don't love you." Auggie thought for a moment then nodded reluctantly.

"You'll come then?" Al signed hopefully.

"Maybe." Auggie signed then grinned knowingly at his brother.

* * *

Wednesday evening Annie couldn't take it anymore; she needed to talk to Auggie. And take a pregnancy test. She wasn't sure about the order, so she decided to head to a Walgreen's to buy a test first. She grabbed her purse and headed out to her car. Half an hour later she pulled into a parking space just down the street from Auggie's apartment building. Her heart was thumping hard in her chest and her fingers were shaking as she typed a quick text to Auggie.

"Are you home? We need to talk." She hit the "send" button and the next few minutes went by in a snails pace. It seemed like hours later when her iPhone beeped, signaling a reply.

"I'm home. I can see you from my apartment. Come on up."

Annie didn't bother to reply. She gathered her purse, stuffed the Walgreen's bag into it and headed upstairs.

# # # # # # # # # # # # # #

Auggie knew something was wrong the minute he saw Annie's face.

She stood in the doorway, her expression unreadable. She started to raise her hands to sign but he stopped her with a raised index finger indicating she should wait and gestured for her to have a seat at the kitchen island. He disappeared into his office for a few moments and came back with the iPad and keyboard and set them up. Her signing was improving every day but he didn't want any miscommunication in this conversation. He decided he'd start with his own apology and started typing.

"I'm sorry about that night Annie, I overreacted and I shouldn't have yelled at you." he typed.

"I'm sorry too. I shouldn't have kept pushing you. It's not that I don't accept you as you are Auggie, I always have. I just know that you could learn to speak really well if you wanted to and I'd support you 100% if you did. I've heard you do it and I believe in you."

"Thank you, Annie. That means more to me than you know, really. But I need you to understand that speaking is not something I'm ever going to do. I lost my hearing when I was just a baby and I have no memory or concept of sound at all. You say I can speak well, and I believe you but I'm just not comfortable with it. "

"You speak to me." Annie signed hesitantly. Auggie turned back to the iPad.

"I trust you. You won't judge me. You said you liked my voice so I let you hear it, now and then anyway. To me it was something special, just for you. Just between us. Can it be that way?" He turned to her with a hopeful look in his dark eyes that made her realize how much she'd missed him. Annie smiled wide and signed 'Just between us.' then slid the keyboard and iPad over in front of her.

"I understand a lot more now, thank you for sharing your feelings with me. I won't bring it up again." He pulled her in for a kiss then leaned his forehead against hers and held her face between both of his hands. He exhaled a cleansing breath then spoke softly – "I missed you." Annie pulled back slightly and signed 'I missed you too.' She turned back to the iPad and typed.

"There's more, Auggie." He looked to her questioningly and she pulled the Walgreen's bag from her purse. His eyes widened as she laid the pregnancy test on the countertop.

"Do you have something to tell me?" Auggie typed after a few moments of stunned silence.

"I'm late." Annie typed back.

Auggie looked at her with a confused look on his face.

"My period is late, by more than a week. It's usually very regular, sometimes it's a couple of days late. Now I'm about a week late, which has never happened before. And it occurred to me that we actually had sex without protection a while back, remember?"

"Shit," Auggie signed. "We did."

"I guess I should just get on with it," she signed. Then she reached for the pregnancy test; Auggie laid his hand on hers to stop her.

"Whatever the result is we'll figure it out," he signed. Annie just nodded and walked into his bathroom and closed the door behind her. A couple of minutes later she came back to the kitchen with the pregnancy test in her hand. She put it down on top of the empty Walgreen's bag.

"We have to wait a few minutes for the result," she signed to Auggie. He nodded and grabbed her hand, giving it a reassuring squeeze.

The next few minutes felt like hours for both of them. Suddenly the timer on Annie's phone signaled that the wait was over. She let go of Auggie's hand and reached for the test, her heart was pounding hard as she picked it up. She glanced over at Auggie before she looked at the little screen on the test; he seemed to be just as nervous as her. After taking a deep breath she looked at the screen; the words "not pregnant" were clear. She held it up for Auggie to see. He wrapped his arm around her and squeezed her. She couldn't quite read his expression; there seemed to be some disappointment mixed in with relief. He reached for the keyboard.

"Are you okay?" he typed.

"I'm fine. Relieved, but I have to admit I'm a bit disappointed too."

"Me too, but I'm sure it'll happen for us when the time is right."

Annie looked at Auggie with a hopeful smile on her face.

"Us? There's still an 'us'?" she signed.

"Does this answer your question?" Auggie had barely finished the last sign when he wrapped his arms around her and kissed her senseless.

# # # # # # # # # # # # # # #

Later that evening, as they lay side by side thoroughly sated and with much lighter hearts than they'd had that morning, Auggie turned up the dimmed lighting and turned to Annie.

"What are your plans for Thanksgiving?" Auggie signed tentatively.

"I hadn't even thought about it. I always spent it with my sister when she lived in DC. Now that she's in California with her husband, I guess I don't have any plans."

"Will you come to Glencoe with me?"

"Meet your family?" Annie signed, a little taken aback. Auggie nodded.

"If you want me to, I'd love to meet them!" Annie signed, starting to get a little excited about the prospect.

"Don't get too excited, I'm still not quite sure what we'll be getting ourselves into."

"We'll be there together. Everything else will fall into place." Annie signed, punctuating it with a quick but gentle kiss.

Auggie smiled and pulled her closer while reaching up and turning off the light. As he settled in, he felt her hand slide under his as he'd done in the dark before. He returned the sign with a squeeze and made a promise to himself to never let this woman get away from him again.

* * *

_ A&A are back together and they're going to Glencoe for Thanksgiving. Stay tuned for the next chapter! __We won't guarantee a shorter wait for the next one, but it'll be worth the wait! ;o) Leave us a review and let us know what you think. :o)_


	7. Chapter 7

_Thank you for reviewing, following and adding our story to your favorites. We're so grateful for the warm reception of our story. :o)_

_We're spoiling you a bit this week - two updates within a few days. My muse was on a roll this week and this chapter came together easily. Again; big thanks to my friend** EmeraldEyedPhoenix** for your input, insight and ideas. Without you this story wouldn't be here! _

_DISCLAIMER: We don't own Annie, Auggie or any other element we've borrowed from Covert Affairs. Just our storyline and the universe we've created._

* * *

**-Chapter 7-**

Annie glanced over at Auggie; he was obviously tense. His jaw was clenched and he had a death grip on the steering wheel of their rented car. The journey from DC to Chicago had gone as smoothly as it could be expected the Wednesday before Thanksgiving. Annie was apprehensive about what the weekend would bring too; after everything Auggie had told her about his upbringing she wondered what his family was really like. Now she was only minutes away from getting her answer.

Auggie pulled off the main road and soon he was driving through what appeared to be an affluent neighborhood; in Annie's opinion all of the houses looked like they were straight out of Architectural Digest. Auggie pulled into the drive of a large red brick home; it was a two-story house with dormers in the attic and Annie was slightly awestruck. What really caught her eye was the ramp up to the front door. Auggie hadn't mentioned that anyone in his family was disabled.

"What's with the ramp?" Annie signed as Auggie turned off the ignition.

"Oh, it's for my twin brother, Allistair, I guess. Figures, they're okay with him being unable to walk, but not with me being unable to hear and speak. I guess I would've been better off if I lost my hearing in combat."

"You've got a twin brother? In a wheelchair?" Annie asked with an incredulous look on her face.

"Al is about 15 minutes older than me. Did ROTC in college and joined the Army as soon as he graduated, I wanted to join too, but being able to hear is a requirement so…" Auggie shrugged. "Anyway, he's career military. He got injured during his second tour in Afghanistan, I'm not sure exactly what happened, it's classified, but he broke his back. He's paraplegic, has been in a wheelchair for about five years now. He's still in the Army; his current rank is Captain. He works at the Pentagon. I'm not really sure what he does though."

"Classified?" Annie asked.

"Yeah. Whenever I ask him about work he's really vague."

"He lives in DC?"

"No, but close. He's got a condo in Falls Church. He's the only one of my brothers I keep in touch with on a regular basis. He was kind of my childhood ally. And he's the only one of my brothers that bothered to learn how to sign. When we both went to college in DC we became pretty close friends, despite going to different schools. He's the one that persuaded me to come here this weekend."

"Really?"

Auggie nodded affirmatively. Before they managed further conversation the front door opened, and Auggie's parents stepped out.

"I guess we'd better get this show on the road," he signed to Annie. She gave his hand a quick squeeze and they stepped out of the car.

# # # # # # # # # # # # # #

"I see you've brushed up on your signing skills," Auggie mentioned to his mother after introductions were made and they moved inside the house. She'd learned the basics when he was a kid, but she'd never been really good at it. Now she seemed to be better than he could remember, she managed to keep the conversation flowing fairly easily.

"I'm taking a class and Chris is learning too." Jean Anderson seemed pretty happy with herself.

"Dad's learning?" Auggie was stunned and touched that his parents finally seemed to accept his disability.

"Yes. Since it's possible that Ash's child is born deaf we figured we'd better be prepared."

Auggie felt like he'd just been punched in the gut; his parents weren't learning for him, but for a grandchild that _might_ be born deaf.

"I'm such a fucking idiot." Auggie signed before he shook his head in disgust and walked out, slamming the door hard behind him.

# # # # # # # # # # # # # #

Annie stood there in shock for a few minutes, not sure what to do. Then Christopher Anderson spoke.

"What the hell got into him? He still has a stick up his ass I see. Damn, I wish the kid would just get over himself."

"Excuse me?" Annie said sharply.

"August has always been difficult. I wish he'd just speak. I spent lots of money on a speech therapist for him, and he just threw it away. If he'd just get over himself we'd be able to communicate normally without this damn sign language thing."

"You know, Auggie told me about how you treated him as a child and I've been thinking he might have been exaggerating. You've just proved to me that everything he has told me is true."

"You have some nerve, talking to me like that." Chris snarled.

"Right now I don't give a damn. I love your son. He's an intelligent, capable person that hasn't let his disability hold him back or define him. He has done incredibly well for himself without speaking. I wish you would open your eyes and see the amazing person he is and be proud of him." Both of Auggie's parents looked slightly stunned but they didn't say anything, so Annie carried on. "Auggie was reluctant about coming here this weekend, but he was willing to give you a second chance. Now you've screwed that up."

Annie turned and walked out to search for Auggie.

# # # # # # # # # # # #

She didn't have to search for long; he was sitting behind the wheel of their rented car. Annie slipped into the passenger seat and wrapped her arms around him. He looked at her; his cheeks were wet and his eyes red rimmed, it was obvious that he'd been crying. Annie had never seen Auggie that upset and wasn't sure what to do. After sitting in silence for a few minutes Auggie turned to Annie.

"Coming here was a mistake. Al convinced me to give them a chance and they just proved to me they haven't changed one bit."

"I'm so sorry, Auggie."

"I've booked us a room at the Marriott in Northbrook for the night and I'll try to get us tickets to go back home tomorrow."

Annie realized there was no way Auggie was going back inside so she nodded and squeezed his hand. He turned the key in the ignition and just as they pulled out of the driveway, a car pulled in. Annie guessed it was one of Auggie's brothers.

* * *

A couple of hours later Annie was sitting on the edge of the bed in their hotel room. Auggie had gone out for a walk, he'd said he needed some fresh air to clear his head and that he wanted to be alone. Annie respected his privacy. She was surprised when there was a knock on the hotel room door, but she figured Auggie might have left his key behind. When she opened the door her jaw dropped; a man that was a spitting image of Auggie, just with a beefier build and a military haircut, was sitting in a wheelchair outside the door. She quickly realized it was Allistair. Despite being in a wheelchair the soldier in him was evident.

"Ummm…hi…you must be Allistair. I'm Annie, Auggie's girlfriend." she said with a smile and extended her right hand.

"Nice to finally meet you Annie, Auggie has told me about you. Please call me Al. Now, where's my pigheaded brother? I understand things didn't go well at our parent's house this afternoon."

"He said he needed to clear his head and went for a walk. He should be back soon though, I actually thought it was Auggie knocking, that he'd forgotten his key or something. Want to come in?"

"Thanks." Allistair said. He popped a quick wheelie to get over the threshold and entered the room. "Since I'm guilty of persuading him to come home for Thanksgiving, I feel like I should talk to him. What exactly happened if you don't mind my asking? I've only got mom and dad's version and I'm sure Auggie's is slightly different."

Annie sighed. "Well, first he got upset when he saw the ramp by the front door, said something about your parents accepting your disability, but not his. That maybe they'd be more accepting if he'd lost his hearing in combat."

"Auggie really wanted to do ROTC and join the Army with me, but because he's deaf he couldn't."

"He told me that earlier today, that he wanted to join, but couldn't. Anyway, when he realized your mother's signing skills were better and she told him that your father is learning to sign too, he seemed very happy. I think he felt that your parents finally accepted him and his disability. Then your mother revealed that they're taking the classes because Ash's kid might be born deaf and Auggie walked out."

"Dad said you were 'spunky' and told him and mom off."

"I gave them a piece of my mind, yes. Your dad said that Auggie needed to get over himself and start speaking, and he griped about spending lots of money on speech therapy for him as a kid. I'm probably out in the cold forever, but I don't really care. I love Auggie and I won't let anyone treat him like that."

"Actually, I think you made them re-think a few things."

"Really?"

"Yeah. I've never agreed with how mom and dad treated Auggie and how they handled his disability growing up. When I was injured Auggie was with me at Walter Reed, he was my emergency contact and I refused to let anyone contact our parents. I was afraid they'd treat me like they treated Auggie."

"So how did they react when they finally found out?"

"Dad was all about pushing me to try out experimental treatments, stem cells and stuff like that. My spinal cord was completely severed, so it's highly unlikely that any kind of treatment will get me any sort of movement or sensation back. I don't want to spend my life on a wild goose chase that won't lead to anything but disappointments. I know it upset him and mom, but at the time they found out I was about to finish my rehab and I was ready to get on with my life. I already had a new assignment waiting for me."

"You're still in the Army, right?"

"Yep, I work at the Pentagon. Sorry, but I can't tell you much more than that." Allistair leaned back in his chair and raked a hand through his short hair.

"Auggie already told me what you do is classified, so it's fine." Annie smiled. She liked Allistair, he seemed like a good guy and she was glad Auggie had him on his side.

"I know dad wants me to pursue experimental treatments and do what I can to get out of this thing," Allistair gestured to his wheelchair. "But about a year after I got injured I sat him down and explained to him what a complete injury means. I gave him an ultimatum; stop bringing up experimental treatments and stuff like that and accept me as I am or I stop coming home. That seems to have shut him up."

Auggie entering the room interrupted further conversation, he looked calmer than when he left the, but tensed up again when he saw Allistair.

"Hi Auggie," Allistair signed. "Rumor has it things didn't go to well with mom and dad."

"No shit," Auggie signed as he sat down on the edge of the bed. "We're going back to DC tomorrow, if I can get us tickets. This was a fucking mistake."

"I'm sorry things turned out like they did, but please don't leave. Ethan and Lucas and their families are really excited that you're here, Ash and Evey too."

"Mom and dad proved to me that nothing has changed since the last time I was here."

"Annie set mom and dad straight you know," Allistair said. "She made them think."

"Yeah right…" Auggie rolled his eyes and shook his head in disgust. Then he turned to Annie. "I'm sorry I ruined your Thanksgiving by dragging you here."

"You didn't ruin anything." Annie assured him.

"I should get back to the house, but please think about it Auggie. Mom and dad seemed to be pretty contrite when I arrived."

"Okay, I'll think about it. Right now I'm starving and I have a feeling Annie is too." He looked at Annie with a questioning expression.

"I'm hungry," she confirmed.

"There's a pretty good Italian place a couple of blocks from here, if I remember correctly. Lucas took me there the last time I was home, their pasta is delicious," Al interjected. "Good seeing you Aug, and nice to meet you Annie." Auggie gave his brother a pat on the shoulder as he wheeled past him toward the door.

"Nice to meet you too, Al." Annie said with a smile as she opened the door for him.

* * *

Later in the evening they were back in their hotel room. Auggie had set up his laptop and was searching for possible flights home. There weren't many available and the few seats that were available were either in first class or ridiculously expensive. He wanted to get back to DC, but there was a limit to how much money he was willing to spend on the tickets. So far everything he'd found was well above that limit. Just as he was about to log off his computer a new email dumped into his inbox; it was from his older brother Ethan.

_Hi Auggie,_

_I'm not sure how to put this; there really are no right words. I know I treated you like shit when we were kids. We all did and I'm sorry for that. As I've grown older I've realized just how wrong I was and if there was any way to turn back time and change that I would do it in an instant, I really would. I'm ashamed of how I acted. You're my brother and I barely know you and my kids don't know their uncle. This is something I hope we can change, if you're willing to give me a second chance. _

_Ethan_

Auggie sighed and shut down his laptop. He wasn't sure what to do about the email from Ethan. Over the weeks since he and Annie had dinner with Ashton they'd had regular contact; they'd practiced sign language via FaceTime a few times and they'd exchanged a few emails. He seemed to have changed and they'd found out that they had a few similar interests. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad to give another one of his brothers a chance as well? With a sigh he climbed into bed and Annie, who was already in bed, scooted over to him and snuggled up against his side. He wrapped his arms around her and kissed her gently on the lips.

* * *

The morning of Thanksgiving Day, Auggie continued his search for plane tickets back to DC, but he didn't have much more success than the previous evening. It looked like they were stuck in Glencoe for at least one more day. With a frustrated sigh he shut down his laptop and turned to Annie, who was lying on the bed, reading a book on her iPad. Before he could say anything his phone vibrated in his pocket with an incoming text message. It was from his mother, who begged him to come back to the house and have breakfast with the family. He tossed the phone onto the desk next to the computer. The clatter caught Annie's attention. She put down the iPad and made eye contact with Auggie.

"What's wrong?" she signed, noticing the tense look on his face.

"Still no luck finding us tickets home and my family is pestering me about giving them a second chance. I got an email from my brother, Ethan, last night and just now I got a text from Mom. She wants us to come to the house and have breakfast with the whole family. It's an Anderson Thanksgiving tradition. I don't know what to do."

Annie moved so she was sitting across from Auggie on the foot of the bed.

"I've been thinking about something your brother told me yesterday," she signed tentatively.

"What?"

"Al told me that for the first year or so after his injury happened your dad kept pushing him to try experimental treatments; that he had to try everything to get out of the wheelchair and back on his feet. At one point he got fed up and sat down with your dad and explained to him exactly what a complete spinal cord injury means. He gave him an ultimatum of sorts; stop bringing up experimental treatments and accept him as he is or he'd stop coming home." When Auggie didn't reply, Annie carried on. "I was thinking that maybe you should try a similar approach with your family. If we go to their house to have breakfast maybe you should take the opportunity to tell them exactly how you feel? From the short conversation I had with your mom and dad yesterday I have a feeling they're completely oblivious to that."

Auggie didn't answer; he just hung his head and raked a hand through his already messy hair. After a few moments he looked at her again.

"I guess I don't have anything to lose?"

"No, I don't think you do. Let's go have breakfast with your family and if it's horrible we'll leave. Maybe you should ask Al to interpret for you? I'm getting better at it, but I still struggle a bit."

"I'll send him a text to give him a heads up, but I'm sure he won't mind."

"I have a feeling he won't mind either. He seems like a good guy."

"He is. I'm glad you like him, he's one of my best friends."

"Honestly, I can't get over just how identical you two are." Annie signed as she pulled on her coat.

"I'm the better looking one, just so you know." Auggie grinned at her.

"Oh I know." Annie signed, pulling him to her by the collar of his coat and kissing him soundly. He pulled back and looked into her eyes.

"Love you." Auggie spoke softly, his eyes searching hers.

"Love you more." She both spoke and signed. This little exchange had become their thing. He had been the one to come up with it and she loved the silly romantic side of him that he shared only with her.

# # # # # # # # # # # # # #

"Are you ready for this?" Auggie signed as he started the rental car.

"I'm beside you all the way. It's going to be good; we're going to have a good day." He was still for a moment, hands gripping the wheel. He looked over at Annie and her hopeful expression fortified him. Covering her hand with his, he nodded and smiled gently.

As they pulled out of the parking lot, Annie could tell he was nervous and apprehensive but he was resolved and would see it through, whatever the outcome. It was one of the many things she admired about him.

* * *

_The next chapter will be pretty tense, so stay tuned! Not sure when that will be posted, I know my schedule is packed for the coming week, with very limited writing time, and EmeraldEyedPhoenix is busy too. We promise it will be well worth the wait! :o)_

_Oh, and we love reviews! ;o)_


	8. Chapter 8

_First of all; so sorry for the long wait for this chapter, but between a big family event and my muse going on strike I've really struggled to write and **EmeraldEyedPhoenix's** muse hasn't been very cooperative either. Over the past couple of days things finally started to come together and after some brainstorming and sending the chapter back and forth between each other we finally have a new chapter to share with you._

_Thanks to all of those that left reviews, followed or favorited our story. :o)_

_DISCLAIMER: We don't own Annie, Auggie or any other thing we've borrowed from Covert Affairs. Just the universe we've created and our characters._

* * *

**-Chapter 8-**

Auggie and Annie walked into his parents' house hand in hand. Annie looked over at Auggie, he practically radiated with tenseness, but he looked as handsome as ever; dressed in a pair of navy dress slacks, a light blue shirt and a navy V-neck sweater that was tight enough to show off his toned upper body. When Al appeared in the hallway she realized that although Auggie was in great shape, he had nothing on his twin brother. He was dressed in a fitted black Henley shirt that showed off the massive muscles in his arms and torso with a pair of dark jeans. He looked more rugged than the previous day because of the dark shadow on his jaw; he'd obviously skipped shaving that morning. It still startled Annie how identical he and Auggie were.

"Hi Auggie, I'm so glad you're here," his mother signed as she stepped into the hallway. She gave him a quick hug. "Breakfast is ready and all of your brothers are here."

Auggie nodded and grasped Annie's hand; she gave it a reassuring squeeze as they followed his mother into the kitchen. The next few minutes were a blur for both of them as Auggie's older brothers introduced themselves and their wives and children. He'd never met his brothers' wives or their children, so he left the introductions up to his brothers. There was no denying the kinship between the five Anderson boys. The mood was tense during the meal, conversation was strained and Auggie didn't join much unless asked. Al did a good job of interpreting for him; Annie was amazed at how skilled he was. Annie made a point of signing as she spoke, so Auggie could keep up with what she was saying. She noticed that Al did it too, and to her surprise Auggie's mother, Ash and Evey tried to sign as they spoke as well.

Auggie was surprised to see that several members of his family, apart from Al, tried to sign as they spoke. Even though his mother had known basic sign language when he grew up she had never bothered to sign unless it was absolutely necessary. She and his father had been adamant that conversations at meals should be oral and if Auggie wanted to take part he needed to read lips and speak. He had never participated in the family's mealtime conversations and he'd generally dreaded meals with his family. He noticed that Ethan and Lucas exchanged uneasy looks, as did their wives. Christopher Anderson remained stoic at the head of the table; he focused intently on his meal and avoided eye contact with anyone.

# # # # # # # # # #

Auggie was about halfway through his meal when someone tapped on his left arm; he turned to see Ethan's oldest son, 11-year old Joshua, standing next to him with a nervous look on his face. When he realized he had Auggie's attention he tentatively signed; "Hi" and introduced himself; finger spelling his name.

Auggie smiled warmly at him and signed slowly back; "Nice to meet you. Where did you learn to sign?"

"Eagle Scouts first and Uncle Ash and Grandma are teaching me more." Auggie looked up questioningly to see his mom and Ash returning his gaze. Ash nodded and signed "He asked us to when he found out you were coming."

Josh nodded. Then he signed tentatively; "I was hoping you would teach me some more."

"I'd be happy to teach you." Auggie signed while smiling widely.

"Thanks, Uncle Auggie!" Josh signed, and then he went back to his seat to finish his meal. Auggie looked to Ash again and got his attention.

"Did you teach him my name?"Auggie asked, clearly surprised by Josh signing "Uncle" then his sign language name. Ash shook his head and pointed at his mom. They both looked to his mom at her end of the table.

"He had to have something to call you, didn't he? Now eat, all of you, before it gets cold." she scolded and signed with a smile.

# # # # # # # # # # # # #

About half an hour later everyone was done eating and the kids were excused; they rushed into the den to watch TV and play video games, leaving the adults in the dining room. Auggie had a sip of coffee; Annie nudged him encouragingly. Auggie looked over at Al, who nodded; he was ready, and took a deep breath.

"I've got something I want to talk to you all about." he signed, slightly hesitant. Al translated effortlessly.

"What?" Jean asked, she both signed and spoke.

"Do you have any idea how you've all made me feel my entire life? Why I stopped coming home on weekends and for school breaks? Why I've barely been in touch with you since I graduated high school?"

There was a stunned silence around the table; no one spoke.

"I grew up feeling you thought I was broken, that you needed to fix me. And I think that's what you were trying to do by pushing me to learn to read lips and go to speech therapy several days a week. You never accepted my disability as part of who I am. You wanted me to be 'normal', whatever that is."

"That's not true Auggie. We love you," Jean interjected.

"That's beside the point. The fact is you never accepted me as I am. If you had, you all would've learned to sign. None of you ever really learned my language. You've always pushed me to speak and communicate 'normally'. That's your language; not mine. Speech will always be foreign to me. I've always felt that you're ashamed having a deaf son and brother."

"What makes you think that?" Lucas asked. "I've never been ashamed of you being deaf."

"If that's true, why the hell did you spend years tormenting me? Making fun of me? Why didn't you learn how to sign?"

Lucas bowed his head and took a deep breath. He didn't really have a good answer for Auggie.

"It amazes me that Mrs. Anderson and Al were the only ones that bothered to learn how to sign," Annie interjected. "Don't you understand how isolated Auggie felt growing up when hardly anyone in his family knew how to sign?"

"He can read lips, it's not like he couldn't understand us," Ethan spoke up with an incredulous look on his face.

"Do you have any idea how hard it is to read lips? Especially for someone like me who has no concept or memory of speech or sound." Auggie shot in. "I'm pretty good at it, but it takes a lot of focus and it's extremely difficult to follow more than one person at a time. Keeping track of a conversation between multiple people is nearly impossible. I miss more than I understand." No one responded, Auggie noticed how everyone seemed very interested in something in their laps. He carried on.

"I came here this weekend because Al and Annie convinced me to give you one more chance. So I decided to have this conversation with you all. I've never really talked about these things and maybe that was my mistake but I hope, now that I have, you can understand how I feel and why seeing the ramp for Al and everyone learning sign for Ash's baby upsets me so much."

"Why wouldn't you want us to do those things?" Lucas asked, indignantly. Auggie looked to Al as he interpreted.

"That's not what I'm saying at all. I just don't understand why you all accept them and not me." Auggie got up from the table and headed upstairs quickly. Annie had seen his eyes and cheeks start to redden as he signed and knew why he left. She started to follow him but turned back when Auggie's father called her name. She looked at the head of the table expectantly.

"I want to talk to him, will you interpret for me Annie?" he asked quietly. She could see the same reddening around his eyes and realized Auggie must get that trait from him.

"Of course." Annie replied simply and followed him as he headed for the stairs.

# # # # # # # # # # # # #

As soon as he was sure Annie and Christopher were out of earshot Lucas turned to Allistair.

"I can't believe Auggie is peeved because mom and dad have built a ramp so you can get in to the house. Doesn't that hurt you? It's not like you chose to be in that wheelchair."

"And it's not like Auggie chose to be deaf," Al shot back. "Has that ever crossed your mind?" Lucas didn't answer so Al carried on. "My biggest fear after I was injured was that you'd treat me like you treat Auggie. That's why I didn't tell anyone right away. I was so worried that you wouldn't accept me as I am. Auggie has felt like his family didn't accept him his entire life."

"We were idiots when we were younger," Ashton interjected. "And we treated Auggie like shit. If there was any way I could turn back time and change how I acted I'd do it. When Evey and I learned that our child could be born deaf we were terrified. After I reconnected with Auggie I've realized that it's not the end of the world. Auggie has done incredibly well for himself despite his disability, you know that right? He has a great job and he's in a relationship with a great woman; Annie is not only beautiful on the outside, she's a pretty amazing person. And she has balls. She sure set me straight the first time we met and God knows I deserved it."

"What happened?" Lucas asked.

"I asked her what a beautiful woman like her was doing with Auggie. She gave me a lecture I'll never forget. Made me think and as I've gotten to know my brother over the past couple of months I've realized that he's a great guy. And he has done amazingly well for himself professionally without speaking."

"What does he do? Something computer related I suppose?" Ethan asked.

"He's got a Masters in Computer Science and he's the Head of IT at Linguistic Endeavors," Al answered.

"The big translation agency?" Ethan queried, looking surprised.

"That's it," Al confirmed

"I had no idea." Ethan shook his head in disbelief.

"None of us have been paying much attention to what Auggie has been up to since he moved to DC. Al is the only person he's kept in touch with," Lucas said. "And I don't blame him for that. We were mean to him as kids."

# # # # # # # # # # # #

Annie followed Christopher Anderson up the stairs and down a wide hallway. He stopped outside the second last door and turned to her, clearly insecure about how to deal with the situation.

"How do you say 'I'm sorry' in sign language?" he asked.

Annie showed him the sign and he repeated it back to her. After a couple of attempts he got it right.

"I'll go in first and tell him you want to talk to him, okay?"

"That's probably a good idea," Chris said quietly.

Annie opened the door and stepped into what she realized had been Auggie's room growing up. He was sitting on the edge of the bed, his head was bowed and he was leaning his forearms on his thighs. Annie sat down next to him and wrapped her arm around his shoulders; he turned to face her. His eyes were red and his cheeks were wet. Annie wiped his cheeks with the pads of her thumbs and pulled him into a kiss. When they pulled apart she quickly signed to him.

"Your dad is waiting outside. He wants to talk to you."

"I'm not so sure I want to talk to him."

"Give him a chance?" Annie pleaded. From what she could read from Chris' demeanor she knew he'd just realized how wrong he'd treated his youngest son. Auggie shrugged and then he nodded tentatively. Annie went to the door and gestured for Chris to come in.

Auggie stood up and turned to face the doorway; he was surprised to see how insecure his father appeared to be and he looked like he'd been crying. Auggie couldn't recall a single time in his life his father had cried; not even in his grandfather's funeral had he shown any emotions. Christopher Anderson was usually a textbook example of stoic.

"I'm sorry," Chris signed. Then he switched to speaking. "I'm truly sorry. I thought I was doing what was best for you. That you wouldn't be able to get a job or function in society without speaking. And I was wrong. I don't expect you to forgive me, but I hope you'll keep coming home to visit. I'm going to really try to learn your language. I realized I barely know my own son and I want to correct that if you'll let me."

Auggie was stunned; he had never expected his stubborn father to admit he'd been wrong and apologize to him. And he seemed to be sincere. "I'm sorry," Chris signed again. Auggie nodded and before he knew it his father had pulled him into a hug. Auggie pulled back and looked in his father's eyes for a long moment.

"I forgive you, Dad." Auggie signed, Annie interpreting softly behind them. Tears coursed down the cheeks of both men as they embraced once again. Chris backed away and turned to Annie, taking both of her hands in his.

"Thank you, Annie." he said simply, squeezed her hands then headed out the door and down the hall. As soon as he was out of the room, Auggie sat down hard on the bed.

"Are you ok?" Annie signed, sitting down next to him and wrapping her arm around him. He nodded and turned to Annie, gathering her to him and kissing her soundly.

"What was that for?"

"For everything you've done. I never thought he'd say those words to me."

"I think you're both too stubborn for your own good."

"Maybe." Auggie grinned.

"Ready to go back downstairs?" Auggie smiled and stood, pulling Annie up with him. He pulled her in for one more kiss then rested his forehead against hers. Moments later they headed back downstairs to rejoin his family and finish what Auggie was fast coming to realize was one of the most important conversations of his life.

* * *

_Please leave a review and let us know what you think. :o) Remember; reviews feed our muses! ;o)_


	9. Chapter 9

_First; thank you for all the follows, favorites and of course the reviews the previous chapters have received. Both **EmeraldEyedPhoenix** and I truly appreciate your feedback._

_Second: apologies from both of us for taking so long to update. Busy lives combined with disobedient muses meant that this chapter was a challenge to write. Now it's finally done and we hope it was worth the wait. :o)_

_Again I must thank my dear friend **EmeraldEyedPhoenix** - her input and insight is invaluable and her additions to this chapter are great (as usual). Without her this story wouldn't exist._

_DISCLAIMER: We don't own Annie, Auggie or any other character borrowed from Covert Affairs. Just our own storyline and the characters we've created._

* * *

**Chapter 9**

When Annie and Auggie took their places by the table in the dining room they noticed the whole family seemed a bit uncomfortable. After a few moments of awkward silence Lucas spoke. Al resumed his role as interpreter.

"I owe you an apology, Auggie. I'm sorry for how I treated you; there is no excuse for that. I had no idea you felt that we didn't accept you, but after what you told us today, I understand why you felt that. Al did a good job of opening my eyes too. I barely know you. My children don't know their uncle. I want to change that and I hope you want to change that too."

Ethan echoed his brother's statement. Before anyone else spoke Auggie decided to take charge of the conversation.

"I came here this weekend because I want to change things too. You're my family and despite all the shit that happened I miss you. I'm willing to let the past be the past and give you a second chance. I'm glad you're starting to see things from my point of view and understand why I feel the way I feel. Hopefully you understand that it's not that I don't want you to build a ramp for Al or learn how to sign for Ash's kid. Of course I want you to do that. I would do that too. What upsets me is that you accept them and their disabilities as part of who they are, but never accepted me. I've been deaf for more than 30 years and only mom and Al bothered to learn to sign. Now, because there's a 25% chance Ash's kid could be born deaf, several members of the family are suddenly willing to learn. That felt like a slap in the face."

"I think I speak for everyone when I say we appreciate that you're here and that you're honest about your feelings. I think most of us were completely oblivious to it." Ethan said. "I know I was. Although, over the past few years I've realized what an idiot I was growing up and I'm sad that I have a brother I barely know."

"You can thank Annie for my honesty; she's the one that encouraged me to tell you exactly how I feel."

"I think you've got yourself a keeper there Auggie," Lucas shot in. "Not only is she beautiful, she's smart too."

"I know I do." Auggie signed then he leaned over and kissed Annie on the cheek. His eyes were shining with love and admiration for her.

# # # # # # # # # # # #

The rest of the meal passed without incident and after she'd cleared the table and put away the leftovers, Jean approached Auggie and Annie.

"I've got your room ready for you Auggie," she signed. "I'm hoping you'll spend the rest of the weekend here instead of at a hotel in Northbrook. I'm not going to push you though."

"We'll stay here for the rest of the weekend mom," Auggie signed with a smile. "That was the original plan. Annie and I will go over to Northbrook and get our luggage and check out of the hotel, if we leave now we should be back in time for the football game."

"Good," Jean said, pulling Auggie in for a hug. "I've missed having my baby around."

"Mom…" Auggie cringed at his mother calling him a baby.

"Like it or not, you'll always be my baby."

"I know, I know…" Auggie grinned knowingly and hugged his mother again. He had missed her more than he'd realized.

# # # # # # # # # # # # # #

They returned to the Anderson house an hour and a half later and hauled their luggage upstairs to Auggie's room. Auggie placed their suitcases on the bed and Annie took a moment to look around, stopping by a shelf that was filled with trophies.

"This was your room growing up?" she asked.

"Yeah, it was. I had lots of posters on the walls and a smaller bed. I see mom has kept my trophy collection on display though."

"Looks like you were quite the athlete," Annie commented, while reading the plaques on the trophies.

"As a kid I was sick a lot, I was really small and scrawny until I started middle school and got into wrestling."

"I can't imagine you as small and scrawny," Annie said, admiring her very fit boyfriend.

"I'm sure mom will show you all of the embarrassing albums before we go back to DC. And at the opposite end of this hallway there's a wall covered with photos of us growing up. I think there's some good stuff there too."

"I knew there was more than one good reason for us to come here this weekend." Annie teased.

"Very funny." Auggie laughed and shook his head. Then he turned his attention to unpacking his bag.

# # # # # # # # # # # # # # #

A little later Jean and Auggie's sisters in law had dragged Annie into the kitchen to help preparing the Thanksgiving dinner while the men watched a football game. Auggie felt a bit uneasy when he walked into the family room where his dad and brothers were. He quickly surveyed the room; his Dad was settled into his recliner and Al was in the second recliner. Ash, Ethan and Lucas were on the couch with their feet propped up on the coffee table. Auggie took a seat on the couch, on the end closest to Al. After a couple of minutes he tapped Al on the arm to get his attention.

"Could you turn on the captions please?" he signed.

"Oh, sure. Didn't think about it," Al signed back, and then he reached for the remote.

"Thanks," Auggie signed as the captions appeared on the bottom of the screen. Then he leaned back against the couch and stretched his legs out in front of him. He wasn't entirely comfortable around his father and brothers just yet, but he decided to focus on the game and try to have a good time. After a few minutes Lucas got up and left the room. He returned shortly after with a six-pack of Budweiser and handed them out on the way back to his seat. He returned shortly after with a six-pack of Budweiser and handed them out on the way back to his seat. Auggie grabbed the offered beer from his brother and signed thank you and smiled.

# # # # # # # # # # # # # # # #

A bit later, Al got a text message on his phone, replied and left the room. The doorbell rang just as Al got to the front door.

"I got it!" he announced in answer to the chorus of voices from the kitchen. Al unlocked the door and pulled it open for his girlfriend, Ellen, with a wide smile.

"Hey beautiful!" he greeted, "I thought you were going to your parent's house?"

"I was but at the last minute they decided to take a cruise and my sister is having a family dinner at her house instead. I was invited but I decided I'd rather spend Thanksgiving with you." She said, leaning in and kissing him thoroughly. "Surprised?" she added with a grin.

"Yeah, I'm glad you're here."

"How did things go with your twin brother?

"Not very well at the beginning but things are better than I thought they'd be now. I guess we've all grown up a lot."

"That's wonderful, I'm glad you guys are patching things up."  
"Me too, more than you know." Al replied sincerely. "So, do you want to come watch the game with us?"

"Nice try but no thanks. I think I'll see if I can help out in the kitchen. You go enjoy your game." After another quick kiss, Al wheeled back down the hall to rejoin his father and brothers as Ellen poked her head in the kitchen.

Annie looked up and was surprised to see a fifth woman, that hadn't been at the breakfast that morning, enter the kitchen tentatively.

"Hi Ellen, so glad you made it after all! Come join us!" Jean Anderson greeted the newcomer. "Annie, I'd like you to meet Al's girlfriend, Ellen Mitchell. Ellen, this is Annie Walker, Auggie's girlfriend."

"It's so nice to finally meet you Annie," Ellen said with a smile as she offered Annie her hand. Annie took the offered hand and shook it.

"Nice to meet you too," she said with a smile.

# # # # # # # # # # # # # #

"Am I the only one who can't get over how identical Al and Auggie are?" Ellen asked Annie sometime later as they peeled potatoes.

"Nope, you're not. I met Al for the first time yesterday and I think I gawked at him for like five minutes. I felt like an idiot, he probably thought I was staring at him because of his wheelchair."

"He's used to being stared at, so don't worry about it. Can't blame women for staring at men that are as handsome as Al and Auggie are, right?"

"I guess you can't, I know I have hard time taking my eyes off Auggie." Annie said with a small laugh.

"So, Al told me you and Auggie met at work?"

"Yeah, I literally ran into Auggie on his first day, head on. The paperwork he was carrying went flying and was scattered all over the hallway. I was mortified. He was really nice about it and told me it was okay. I saw him a few times over the coming week, but it wasn't until about a week later we started to get to know each other."

"What happened?"

"Just when I was about to finish a big assignment my computer froze. Auggie brought it back to life and saved almost all of my work so I managed to meet my deadline. I offered to take him out to lunch as a thank you and I mentioned to him that I was thinking abut signing up for an ASL class the company was offering. He offered to teach me how to sign and the rest is history I guess. We've been going out for a few months now. What about you and Al, how long have you been together?"

"It'll be a year since we met on New Years Eve, and we've been together for about eight months now. We met at a party and hit it off pretty well. Al asked me to go on a date with him and things just progressed slowly. I wish my family would be more accepting though. Especially my Dad; he's having a hard time accepting that I'm in love with a disabled man. How did your family react when you introduced Auggie to them?"

"I haven't introduced him to my family yet. My parents live in San Diego and my sister and her husband moved to LA a few months ago. We haven't had time to go to California to visit and they haven't been to DC. My sister knows Auggie is deaf and seems okay with it. I'm more worried about my mother to be honest. She can be pretty narrow minded."

"People in general can be so damned narrow minded. Al and I have a few friends in common, so I haven't had to deal with too many awkward moments with friends. I did bring him to a work function a while back and the next day a few of my co-workers were questioning me about why I was going out with a guy in a wheelchair."

"I had a similar experience with a co-worker the morning after Auggie and I spent the night together for the first time."

"What happened?"

"Well, we hadn't exactly planned for me to stay over, so I didn't have any clothes with me. Auggie had promised to take me over to my apartment so I could change and get my car in the morning, but we ended up oversleeping and there was no time for that. I borrowed a sweater from Auggie and tried to make myself as presentable as possible with the little makeup I had in my bag. Samantha, who's the office gossip, picked up on my walk-of-shame outfit as soon as I stepped into the office and started interrogating me. When I told her I was seeing Auggie she told me I shouldn't settle for a cripple."

"Auggie isn't a cripple."

"Neither is Al. And I hate that term. Al can't walk and Auggie can't hear, but that doesn't make them any lesser."

"That's exactly how I feel. They're both intelligent, capable men with great careers and they don't let their disabilities define them or hold them back."

Jean listened to the conversation between her two youngest sons' girlfriends and couldn't have been more proud to welcome these two ladies to her family. She knew full well that Annie and Ellen were both a big part of the reason that her entire family was now under the same roof for the first time in more years than she cared to admit. As she continued cooking, she sent up a silent prayer of thanks.

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A bit later in the afternoon Al wheeled into the kitchen.

"Alli! No men in the kitchen, you know the rules!" Jean scolded when she saw her son entering the room.

"I just came to check on my girlfriend," he said with a smile. "And to grab us some more beer."

"I thought Chris stocked the fridge in the bar. He said he was going to yesterday."

"The beers in there aren't cold enough mom. I stocked that fridge after breakfast today, dad forgot."

"Oh, okay. Well, grab that beer and get out of here. We still have plenty of work to do before dinner's ready."

Al just shook his head and laughed as he wheeled over to the fridge and pulled out a six-pack of beer. On his way out of the room he stopped by the counter where Annie and Ellen were working.

"Hey babe," he said as he placed the beers on the counter and pulled Ellen down to sit on his lap. "Having a good time?"

"I am. Annie and I were discussing how lucky we are to be dating the most handsome Anderson men," she said with a flirtatious smile.

"Is that so?" Al chuckled. "Remember I'm the handsome one, not my shaggy headed twin brother."

"Oh, I definitely prefer you soldier boy." Ellen kissed him squarely on the lips and stood up. She grabbed the beers from the counter and placed the six-pack in Al's lap. "Now get back to your dad and brothers and let us ladies finish dinner."

"Yes Ma'am," Al said, giving her a quick salute before he wheeled out of the kitchen. In the doorway he stopped and popped a wheelie and turned back to Ellen. When he'd made eye contact with her he spoke, slightly teasing, but with a serious undertone; "By the way; mom is the only one that's allowed to call me Alli. Remember that." He popped another wheelie and left the room.

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"Did you have a good day?" Annie asked Auggie as they got ready for bed late in the evening.

"I did actually. A very good day, better than I'd imagined a day with my family could be. Thanks for pushing me to be honest with them."

"You should thank Al too. He's the one that gave me the idea, when he told me about the talk he had with your father after he got injured."

"Oh, I have. He has actually mentioned doing it before, but I never thought they'd listen. I'm glad they were so receptive and Lucas and Ethan seem to have matured a lot."

"So, when are you giving Josh a sign language lesson?"

"They're coming here for dinner on Saturday, so I promised him a lesson after we finish eating. He's really eager to learn and is already begging his parents to get him an iPad for Christmas so we can practice using FaceTime."

"That's cool. Seems like the rest of the kids are curious too."

"They are. Looks like most of my family is suddenly interested in learning to sign. Maybe it'll be less of a challenge to communicate the next time I come home."

"You're planning your next visit already?"

"Well, it's not like I have anything concrete in mind, but I intend on coming back, yes. It's going to take some work to rebuild our relationship."

"Yep, Rome wasn't built in a day, but I'm sure it'll be worth it in the end."

"I think so too."

After brushing their teeth they climbed into bed and Annie curled up next to Auggie, who wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close to him. Within minutes they succumbed to sleep, both exhausted by the emotional rollercoaster they'd been on over the past couple of days. Neither of them had slept much the previous night.

* * *

Black Friday came and went in a blur of department stores and shopping bags. Annie and Auggie decided not to join in the madness and instead opted to take a mini-tour of Glencoe. Auggie showed her the highlights of his hometown and promised to show her more when they visited again.

* * *

On Saturday evening, Ethan and his wife Cecilia, along with a very eager Josh, appeared at the Anderson homestead for a dinner of turkey casserole. Josh could barely sit still through the meal and Auggie couldn't help but grin at his enthusiasm. Auggie had talked to his mom earlier that day to get a feel for how much Josh already knew. He was pleasantly surprised by how much he had learned in a relatively short time. It touched Auggie that his nephew wanted to communicate with him and get to know him as much as he did. He just hoped that Josh's enthusiasm would rub off on the rest of his family.

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After dinner, they all gathered in the living room. Annie had offered to interpret for Josh during the lesson if needed but Auggie declined. The best way for Josh to learn was to jump in with both feet. They'd learn to communicate with each other as they went. Auggie and Josh sat on the couch facing each other and began. They went through the manual alphabet and moved quickly to basic words. They practiced a few questions and answers and basic phrases as they progressed. Auggie noticed the rest of the family watching their lesson.

"You all can join if you want." Auggie signed to the rest of the room.

"No thanks son, tonight's lesson is for Josh. He gets your undivided attention." Chris replied, partly in sign and partly spoken. It all but choked Auggie up to know that, for the first time in his life, his dad was really trying to sign.

After they'd been at it for almost two hours, Auggie decided to end the lesson with a surprise for Josh. He had made up a sign language name for his nephew the night before. He signed to him that the lesson was over and thanked him for wanting to learn, using his name sign. Josh was confused as he expected he would be at first.

"What was that last sign, Uncle Auggie?" Josh signed.

"That was your name, Josh." Auggie signed, using his name sign again. Josh's eyes lit up and Auggie smiled at his nephew warmly.

"Show me again, please?" Auggie signed his name again, this time more slowly.

"That's the sign for smart or brilliant, right?"

"Right! But with the "j" hand for 'Josh'." Auggie explained.

"It's perfect!" The boy exclaimed and proceeded to show everyone else in the room his new name in sign language.

Later, as Ethan and Cecilia were leaving, Cecilia asked Annie to interpret for her to say a few words to her brother-in-law.

"I just want to thank you for being so sweet to Josh tonight. It means a lot to him and it means a lot to Ethan and me as well."

"I was glad to teach him. He's an amazing kid." Auggie replied through Annie.

"We're going to learn too, I wanted you to know that. Ethan isn't good at expressing his feelings but he's glad you're here now, and so am I." She finished with a warm smile of her own and hugged both Auggie and Annie.

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As Auggie drifted to sleep that night, Annie close enough to feel her heartbeat with his, he felt more at peace than he had in longer than he could remember. He felt like things were finally coming together for him, like he was exactly where he was meant to be.

* * *

_This was the final chapter from the Thanksgiving trip to Glencoe, in the next chapter A&A are back in DC. No guarantees that the wait for the next chapter will be any shorter, but we hope it will be. Reviews encourage our muses and usually makes them work faster. ;o)_


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